Mosley to make decision on judge in Rhodes’ fraud case

Kim Smith

Thursday, Sept. 21, 2000 | 10:47 a.m.

District Judge Donald Mosley is expected to decide by Tuesday if fellow District Judge Kathy Hardcastle should remove herself from North Las Vegas City Councilman John Rhodes' case.

Mosley met in his chambers Wednesday with Rhodes' attorney, Robert Lucherini, and Deputy Attorney General Gregory Hojnowski and allowed them to argue their respective positions.

Rhodes has been indicted on fraud charges in connection with two burglary reports he filed with his insurance company, State Farm.

Lucherini wants Hardcastle recused because when she worked for the state's attorney general's office 17 years ago she set up the insurance fraud unit and therefore could possibly know things another judge would not.

Traditionally, Chief District Judge Lee Gates would make the determination as to whether a judge should recuse himself from a case, but Gates was unable to do so because Rhodes once announced his intention to run for the County Commission against Gates' wife, Yvonne Atkinson Gates.

Lucherini and Hojnowski agreed to allow Mosley to hear their arguments.

Lucherini said he asked for the hearing to be held in chambers because he did not want anyone in the public to falsely interpret his arguments as an attack on Hardcastle.

Although he greatly respects her, Lucherini said he simply feels her close relationship with the attorney general's office "clearly raises a question of impartiality and implied bias."

According to the attorney general's office, Rhodes filed false insurance claims pertaining to two alleged burglaries at his Diana Drive home, one in February 1997 and the other in September 1998.

Rhodes denies the allegations, and Lucherini is challenging Hojnowski's interpretation of an insurance fraud statute used in the case.