Fired parole officer files suit to get his job back

Friday, Sept. 11, 1998 | 1:45 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Former Assemblyman Art Rader has filed a lawsuit in District Court to overturn his firing as a state parole and probation officer for brandishing a gun at a store clerk and later lying about it.

Rader, an assemblyman from Las Vegas in the 1985 Legislature, said today state Hearing Officer John Graves ignored the evidence in upholding his dismissal.

Graves, in a decision released Thursday, said Rader, who worked as an officer since 1989, could have caused serious injury or death to AM/PM Mini Mart clerk Irfan Chaundry, who had refused to permit Rader to use the telephone.

Rader reported that he was returning home in the pre-dawn hours of Jan. 4, 1997, from his part-time job with Pinkerton Security when he saw two men beating up another man. He said he tried to stop the assault but the two assailants fled and so did the victim.

Rader said he called to a man coming out of the mini-market to call 911. The man refused, he said. Chaundry then came out of the market and Rader said he asked him to call 911. Chaundry, Rader said, replied that he should use the pay telephone outside.

Rader said he then grabbed his gun from his truck, went inside the market, showed his badge and said, "state police officer." Chaundry, he says, still refused to give him the telephone. Rader said he then pointed the weapon at Chaundry and demanded the telephone, wanting to relay the information about the assault to police.

Graves said the clerk was not a threat to Rader, whose conduct was "startling." He said Rader displayed "an ungovernable temper," which could have caused harm to Chaundry.

In the video of the incident, Graves said Rader looked more like an armed robber than a law enforcement officer.

Other violations by Rader include failure to get permission from the division to work at outside employment, initially lying about pointing the weapon at Chaundry and not reporting the incident to his superiors.

"To state that Rader brought disrespect and discredit to the division is to understate that impact," Graves said. He added, "...no doubt remains that employment with the division is impossible."

Rader said Graves ignored the evidence presented at the hearing. He said the weapon was pointed at the clerk for only three seconds and that he never lied about the incident.

"This is terrible public policy and it discourages law enforcement officers from taking action in off-duty situations," Rader said. He said he should have arrested the clerk for obstructing justice.