Tuesday, April 28, 1998 | 9:54 a.m.
The race for Clark County sheriff appears to be getting off the starting blocks.
Chuck Lee is kicking off his campaign tonight on a cul-de-sac at McKellar Circle -- the scene near Paradise and Flamingo roads where the fatal drive-by shooting by a Metro Police officer of 21-year-old Daniel Mendoza occurred Dec. 28, 1996.
Former officer Ron Mortensen and his partner, former officer Chris Brady, were celebrating Mortensen's 30th birthday that night when, with Brady at the wheel, the pair drove to 537 McKellar Circle. Mortensen opened fire on a group of people standing in front of an apartment complex, killing Mendoza. Mortensen was convicted of the murder last year. Brady was not charged with a crime.
"Announcing my candidacy on McKellar Circle is a symbolic gesture of the way the Mendoza investigation was improperly handled by Metro," said Lee, a former assistant chief investigator for the district attorney's office and a retired Metro detective.
Lee, 61, who for the past seven years has co-owned Courtesy Oldsmobile, last week opened his campaign headquarters at 2411 Western Ave., Suite B. Running his campaign are Allan and Debbie Rose.
The kickoff, where Lee said he will "identify the problems plaguing Metro," is scheduled to begin at 5:15 p.m. Lee said he obtained a special permit from Metro to hold the event for which he said he expects "a large turnout."
Among the other candidates for sheriff are Bobby Hitt and incumbent Sheriff Jerry Keller.
Hitt, 49, who retired last year as a Metro lieutenant after 29 years on the force, said he expects more than 300 people at his "Bobby Hitt for Sheriff" kickoff fund-raiser on May 16 in the Plaza hotel-casino's ballroom.
Hitt's campaign headquarters, at 717 E. Fremont St., are set to open this week, he said. Hitt's campaign managers are Helen Foley and Linda Fess.
"Bobby Hitt has tremendous support and respect from Metro's rank-and-file officers," Foley said Monday.
Keller, 51, kicked off his re-election campaign last month at the Thomas & Mack Center's Si Redd room, where he told a group of about 125 supporters that the past four years have been a challenge.
Keller's headquarters, at Alta Drive and Decatur Boulevard, also is open. R&R Advertising owner Billy Vassiliadis is handling his campaign. R&R's Howard Stutz is his spokesman.
No other names have surfaced as vying for the seat Keller has held since he took office in January 1995.
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