Court using three-justice panel format

Friday, Jan. 15, 1999 | 11:52 a.m.

A panel of Justice Cliff Young, Miriam Shearing and Myron Leavitt handed down the decisions Wednesday and Thursday - most of which rejected moves by prison inmates for new trials.

"It is kind of exciting. Ten days after they are sworn in, they already are in action," Chief Justice Bob Rose said, referring to four justices who were sworn in earlier this month, including new Justices Leavitt, Nancy Becker and Deborah Agosti.

As part of the expansion of the court from five to seven justices, most cases will be decided by three-justice panels, one in Carson City, the other in Las Vegas.

Young, Shearing and Leavitt are members of the Carson City panel. Becker, Bill Maupin and Agosti serve on the Las Vegas panel. Membership in the panels will be rotated after six months.

By meeting in panels, the justices hope to decide more cases and help reduce the backlog of more than 2,000 uncompleted cases.

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