Sheriff: Evidence in McDonald probe enough for arrest

Erin Neff and Keith Paul

Monday, Oct. 16, 2000 | 11:26 a.m.

Although District Attorney Stewart Bell declined to prosecute two cases against Michael McDonald, Metro Police insist they found enough evidence to arrest the Las Vegas City Councilman, and may take their case elsewhere.

Sheriff Jerry Keller maintained Friday afternoon that his detectives did a complete investigation and found probable cause of the crimes.

"We felt the crimes had been predicated, and the probable cause shows that they were," Keller told the Sun. "I'm not upset, angry or even frustrated. I'm confident we did our job."

McDonald's attorney, Richard Wright, claims the entire investigation was a witch hunt brought by vindictive cops in McDonald's former department.

But Keller said his detectives did their job, and it's up to prosecutors to decide to go forward with the case.

"I'm confident there was probable cause in the case, or I wouldn't have wasted (Bell's) time," Keller said.

When detectives finished the investigation, they turned the findings over to prosecutors, but since police claim there was probable cause, they could have just arrested McDonald and booked him into the jail.

"We had the legal authority to do that," Keller said. "But in these types of cases and in this case (where) the activity in question had passed, we submit to the (district attorney's office) and let them make the call."

When asked if Metro would hand the case over to the FBI or federal prosectors for an investigation into McDonald, Keller said he "could neither confirm nor deny" that would occur.

Keller did say Metro officials originally contacted the U.S. attorney about the case, but they were told the case should stay in the state court system.

On Friday Bell and three other prosecutors decided not to go forward with separate cases in which police found evidence of public misconduct.

In separate five-page rulings, the attorneys determined there was insufficient evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

In the first case, Metro investigated McDonald's actions regarding an application for a zoning change on a building owned by political consultant Sig Rogich and the sudden appearance of a church nearby.

The church was run by Annette Marie Patterson, sister of Crazy Horse Too owner Rick Rizzolo, a longtime friend of McDonald.

Just before a council vote on the Rogich building's tavern license request, McDonald called two city employees to his office and ordered them to conduct additional surveys to determine whether the building was too close to other taverns or sexually oriented businesses.

City Manager Virginia Valentine told the employees, Paul Sullivan and Nancy Peace, not to conduct the surveys. Since the surveys were never carried out, McDonald technically did not use the employees, and thus didn't violate that section of state law.

Bell also wrote that police could not prove McDonald's actions were designed for personal gain or benefit, but rather were to thwart Rogich's attempt to win the tavern license.

"If our statute went beyond personal gain or benefit and said 'or to cause detriment or harm to some private citizen,' then we may have been in a position where we would go forward with the case," Bell said Friday, speaking hypothetically about state law.

In the second case, Bell's office said they could not sustain charges of bribery and misconduct related to McDonald's actions in the potential sale of Las Vegas Sportspark.

Both statutes make it a crime for a public official to receive inappropriate compensation from a private source for exercising his official duties in a certain way.

McDonald is vice president of corporate development for Las Vegas Color Graphics, a company owned by Larry Scheffler. Scheffler and his business partner, Linda Fernandez, are partners in the financially troubled Sportspark.

During an Aug. 16 council meeting, the third Sportspark partner, Don Schlessinger, alleged McDonald tried to broker the sale of the recreation center during a tour with Rizzolo and Rizzolo's attorney, Dean Patti.

McDonald angrily denied Schlessinger's comments, saying he and the others were merely looking for a site to hold a charity softball tournament.

Police investigators contend the May 15 tour was strictly about selling Sportspark. The investigation also shows McDonald asked to meet with Valentine about the potential purchase of Sportspark. Valentine would not meet with him because McDonald has a conflict of interest in that he works for Scheffler.

McDonald also discussed the potential sale of the park with Councilman Larry Brown and Mayor Oscar Goodman, according to the police case.

But since McDonald was already employed by Scheffler, and his $52,000-a-year job was not given to him because he could broker the sale of the park, Bell said no personal gain could be proved.

"Whether McDonald's level of zealousness in advocating the city's purchase of the Sportspark under circumstances where his conflict of interest allowed 'discussion' but precluded 'lobbying' is a matter for a decision in a forum other than the criminal justice system," the prosecutors wrote.

Even though McDonald won't be prosecuted in state court on the charges, the cases may be forwarded to an ethics commission. Prosectors are waiting for an opinion from Deputy District Attorney Mary-Anne Miller to determine if Metro's investigative work can be forwarded to an ethics panel.

"We don't do ethics investigations, we do criminal investigation," Keller said. "Our goal was to find the truth, and I think we did."