Parraguirre plans high court bid

Wednesday, April 28, 2004 | 9:28 a.m.

The race for retiring Justice Deborah Agosti's seat on the Nevada Supreme Court has a new contender as Clark County District Judge Ron Parraguirre announced his intention to run Tuesday.

Parraguirre's sudden decision to join the already heated race came only 10 days after Agosti, 52, announced she would not run for re-election because of health reasons.

The civil judge said he hadn't planned to run for the Nevada Supreme Court until Justice Bob Rose retired in 2006, but the outpouring of support he received after Agosti made her announcement encouraged him to make his bid now, Parraguirre said.

"I would have liked to have had the benefit of planning, but this has really been self-organized in the last week," Parraguirre, 44, said during a news conference Tuesday in his courtroom.

The Nevada Supreme Court drew sharp criticism last year for its decision to suspend the constitutional requirement that two-thirds of the Legislature must approve tax hikes, a decision made to allow education to be funded. The decision helped to break a legislative impasse and allowed the budget to be passed by a two-thirds majority vote.

Parraguirre said the tax-increase issue did not influence his decision to run for the Nevada Supreme Court and declined to comment on the impact of that ruling. Parraguirre would only say that while he "may not have agreed with that (constitutional ruling)" he was not "privy to those conversations" and it would be inappropriate to comment publicly in the event that he may someday have to review as a justice himself.

Instead, Parraguirre focused on his family's 130-year history in Nevada's judicial system as both lawyers and judges, and on his own experience as a judge. After a stint in his family's private practice, Parraguirre ran successfully for a seat on the Las Vegas Municipal Court in 1991 and then was appointed to District Court Department 3 by Gov. Kenny Guinn to fill a vacancy in 1999.

Parraguirre was elected to that spot in 2000 and re-elected in 2002. He now serves as chief judge for civil cases. Clark County has the highest case load in Nevada and one of the highest case loads in the country, Parraguirre said.

"I've come to know the unique circumstances and challenges that each court faces," Parraguirre said, referring to his connections to both Northern and Southern Nevada, and to the state's rural and urban areas.

"The Supreme Court needs a justice who is not only experienced in the law but in the administration of the law."

Parraguirre said he had already raised some money, though he would not disclose how much, for what he said will definitely be a "million-dollar race."

Others vying for the position include Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Doug Smith, 52, entertainment attorney and former head of the state Republican Party John Mason, 57, and former state Sen. Don Ashworth, 66, also of Las Vegas.

Political filing opens May 3 and closes May 14.