Elliott, Guzman advance

Kim Smith

Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2002 | 9:32 a.m.

The nine-way race for Department L in Clark County's Family Court has come down to two opponents who spent widely differing sums in their battle for the newly created position.

Jennifer Elliott took home nearly 23 percent of the vote Tuesday, while Fernando Guzman squeaked by Rachelle Resnick with 15 percent of the vote compared with her 14.6 percent.

Elliott, owner of Peace Talk Conflict Resolution and Counseling Services, spent nearly $39,000 in her bid for the bench. Guzman, a Family Court hearing master, spent just over $7,000.

They will face off in November.

Elliott said she believes her experience in dealing with family conflicts earned her votes, rather than the money she spent.

She has been a licensed attorney since 1986, a licensed marriage and family therapist, a private mediator and child custody evaluator and a member of the Foster Care Review Board.

"I'm very excited and I'm overwhelmed too," Elliott said. "I'm most happy that the people who supported me were able to get my message out there."

If elected, Elliott said, she would work to make child custody battles less adversarial, going so far as to visit other states to find successful programs to implement here.

Guzman said he felt it was unfair to hold a fund-raiser with so many people running for the same department. He decided to wait to see how he would do in the primary before asking for donations.

Fund-raising is now at the top of his priority list, Guzman said.

"Considering there were nine candidates, I feel very fortunate I came in second," Guzman said. Guzman, who has been a hearing master for 23 years, said that decisions need to be made in a timely manner in Family Court and both parents need to be involved in a child's life.

Family Court Judge Lisa Brown handily won the top spot in the Department J race. She won nearly 67 percent of the vote, while Thomas Kurtz, a Family Court alternate hearing master, garnered nearly 27 percent of the vote.

Donn Prokopius won 6 percent of the votes. Only the top two vote-getters progress to the general election.

Kurtz said he believes he is the best qualified person for the job, having spent 20 years practicing law and the past four years as an alternate hearing master.

Three Family Court judges only drew one competitor, eliminating the need for a primary. Judge Cynthia Dianne Steel will face Jeffrey Neeman in November, Judge Cheryl Moss will face Phil Beuth and Judge Nick Del Vecchio will go up against Michelle Darquea.

Family Court Judge Art Ritchie drew no opponents and will automatically be re-elected in November.