Suit against Station Casinos to await fed decision

Monday, Nov. 13, 2000 | 11:40 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa, in an about-face, said today she won't prosecute a civil suit against Station Casinos for allegedly violating Nevada's political campaign law until a federal court rules on the constitutionality of the law.

"Everything is on hold," Del Papa said, referring to her District Court suit in Carson City seeking $5,000 fines against Station Casinos, former Station Vice President Mark Brown and political consultant Tom Skancke and the Skancke Co.

"There is no sense proceeding while another action is pending," Del Papa said, referring to the federal court case filed by the American Civil Liberties Union contesting the constitutionality of the law. Station and Brown also filed suit in District Court in Las Vegas raising the same issue.

Nevada's campaign law bars the distribution of anonymous campaign literature. The ACLU says it's an unconstitutional ban on free speech. U.S. District Judge David Hagen has had the case under submission since June.

Brown, with the aid of Skancke, distributed an anonymous flier against Clark County Commissioner Lance Malone after Malone changed his vote on a casino zoning issue in southwest Las Vegas. Station Casinos had opposed the project.

On Sept. 22, when she filed the civil suit, Del Papa noted that lawsuits were challenging the law, but she added, "Unless and until a court orders otherwise, this office will proceed with appropriate enforcement actions both because it is our duty to uphold the law and because it is the right thing to do given the negative impact on our election system when anonymous and often false information is disseminated."

Station Casinos has already paid a $498,000 penalty to the Nevada Gaming Commission for failing to supervise Brown, who was a vice president for government relations. Brown later resigned and the casino company terminated its $5,000-a-month retainer to Skancke.

ACLU Director Gary Peck said it was "unfortunate" that Del Papa took so long to make the "right decision."

"It would not be unreasonable to think the decision-making process was based more on politics than on careful legal analysis," he said. "The attorney general's office, posturing throughout the campaign season, could not help but have had a chilling effect on the people's First Amendment rights.

"I'm disappointed and troubled the case languished in federal court all these months while the attorney general's office was permitted to handle it (the Stations case) the way it did," Peck said.