Judge helps chase down theft suspect

Kim Smith

Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2000 | 11:04 a.m.

Most criminal defendants meet District Judge John McGroarty in his courtroom.

Rene Calletano had the misfortune to meet McGroarty on the streets of downtown Las Vegas.

As a result, Calletano will be appearing before Justice of the Peace Douglas Smith on a felony theft charge Wednesday.

McGroarty said he and his wife were shopping at Catholic Charities on Main Street Oct. 15 when he heard a woman screaming in the alley behind the store. He stepped out to see what was going on.

"I saw this lady tugging at a suitcase and a man tugging on the other end," McGroarty said.

The man got the suitcase away from the woman and began walking away quickly, McGroarty said.

McGroaty, 59, said he decided to follow him, but the man noticed and began sprinting.

Undaunted, McGroarty said, he began running after the man. A couple of blocks later, James Manning, a mechanic with Western Cab Co., had join the chase, and the two managed to catch up with the suspect.

"Before we even touched him, he put down the suitcase and put his hands in the air as if to say 'You can have it,' " McGroarty said.

McGroarty, who gave up city league basketball 15 years ago because of some herniated discs, joked that he was lucky he didn't have a heart attack running after the guy.

"The only reason I caught up with him is because he still had the suitcase," McGroarty said with a laugh.

McGroarty, Manning and about a dozen other people watched the suspect until police arrived and arrested him.

Calletano was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on the theft charge.

Manning, too, heard the woman scream. When he and a group of other mechanics saw McGroarty chasing Calletano, they jumped in a car and began following them.

A short distance later, Manning said, he bailed out of the car and continued the chase on foot.

"I was thinking of everyone's mother, and I just went for it," Manning said. "I didn't know if (Calletano) had a gun or a knife, but I knew I had four mechanics right behind me if I needed backup."

It wasn't until after the police showed up and he got a big hug from the victim that Manning realized he'd been helping a district judge -- not that it would have changed his actions had he known.

"He needed help, and I thought I'd do the right thing," Manning said.

McGroarty said he believed the man decided to grab the victim's suitcase after seeing her get off the bus a short time earlier.

McGroarty wrote to Manning's boss about the mechanic's bravery and the thoughtfulness of another unknown employee who helped find the victim's purse.

"I appreciated them coming to help," McGroarty said. "It's not too often that people will do something like that, and it's heartwarming when you hear about it."

McGroarty and Manning are expected to testify at Calletano's preliminary hearing on Wednesday.

It will be the second time McGroarty will testify at such a hearing. Two years ago he helped identify a serial purse snatcher after an incident at a Sahara Avenue grocery store.

"It's just one of those things, I guess," McGroarty said. "I was in the wrong place at the right time or maybe the right place at the wrong time."