Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline's Caseload Growing, Needs More Staff

Complaints against judges across the state are rising, but the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline is having a tough time keeping up.

Executive Director Paul Deyhle said the commission lacks modern-day resources, manpower and in some instances authority to handle the growing caseload.

The backlog is the result of years of being underfunded and ignored within state government, he said.

This past year, the seven-member commission spend $183,000 — more than three-quarters of its budget — pursuing a single disciplinary action against former Family Court Judge Steven Jones, who fought the panel every step of the way.

For its efforts, the commission ended up giving Jones a three-month suspension without pay over his mishandling of a romantic relationship with a prosecutor who appeared before him.

It took the federal government to get Jones off the bench. He resigned in September as part of a deal with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to a felony in a decade-long $2.6 million investment scheme.

Deyhle has big plans to get the struggling commission what it needs to go after errant judges like Jones in the future.

“We’re trying to bring the office back into the 21st century,” said Deyhle, who has been at its helm since November 2013. “Not much has been done for the commission in many, many years. It’s time.”

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Judicial Discipline Commission Hopes to Add Staff as Caseload Grows