State pays court judgment of $499,000 but man who sued won’t see a dime

Thursday, Feb. 19, 1998 | 9:41 a.m.

Martin Stivers successfully claimed the state Private Investigator's Licensing Board violated his constitutional rights when it denied him licenses.

Deputy Attorney General Mark Gahn told the Board of Examiners on Wednesday that a jury didn't understand the complex case, holding that an investigator, a former board member and board chairman Brian McKay were among those biased against Stivers.

But Gahn said the investigator who did the background investigation was not working for the state when the hearing was held, the board member wasn't on the board when the decision was made and McKay didn't vote on the license.

"One of our arguments is that the jury must have misunderstood what the law was because how could they conclude that people who didn't even vote could damage him," said Gahn.

But he said after losing the federal court case and the Ninth Circuit court appeal, "we decided to cut our losses."

Stivers was denied private investigator's licenses in 1989. Gahn said the board did so on grounds including lack of experience and lack of integrity. He sued in 1991 saying the decision violated his constitutional rights.

Stivers has since gotten those licenses and is practicing in the Reno area. But Gahn said he won't get any of the money approved by the board. More than $300,000 will go for attorney fees and costs. And Gahn said the Internal Revenue Service has attached all remaining cash to pay employee payroll and other taxes.