Malone sues Station over campaign flier

Kim Smith

Wednesday, March 6, 2002 | 9:24 a.m.

Former Clark County Commissioner Lance Malone has filed a libel suit against Station Casinos executives over an anonymous flier that was critical of his vote approving the casino of a competitor.

Malone is suing Mark Brown, a former vice president of Station Casinos Inc.; Tom Skancke, a political consultant for Station Casinos; Station Casinos and the Fiesta Hotel Corp.

Also named in the lawsuit are The Creative Group, Public Affairs Campaign 2000, Passkey Systems and the Howard Hughes Corp.

According to the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in District Court, Station Casinos contributed to Malone's re-election campaign. But when he voted to approve a zoning change that would allow for the development of a competitor's casino in the Spring Valley area of southwest Las Vegas, the defendants, Malone charges, "set out to punish" him by coordinating the flier.

The lawsuit states Brown also threatened Malone falsely with an FBI investigation in an attempt to get him to withdraw from the commissioner's race.

Malone was beaten in the primary election.

Skancke could not be reached for comment, and Scott Nielson, executive vice president and general counsel for Station Casinos, did not return calls.

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