Hardesty campaigns for high court

Kirsten Searer

Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2004 | 11:01 a.m.

Washoe County Chief District Judge Jim Hardesty said he hopes voters casting ballots in November realize that the Nevada Supreme Court is facing some serious decisions in the near future.

Hardesty, a former trial lawyer who once represented various Reno-based media outlets, was in Las Vegas on Monday to campaign for retiring Justice Miriam Shearing's seat on the Nevada Supreme Court.

He said he disagreed with some of the court's reasoning in the controversial two tax cases handled last summer. One case ruled that the Legislature could pass a tax increase with less than a two-thirds vote to fund education. The court later refused to rescind that ruling after the Legislature passed a tax hike with the required two-thirds.

Hardesty said the controversy had one bright spot: Nevadans realized how influential Supreme Court justices can be. And in a relatively young state with plenty of legal questions still to decide, Supreme Court justices need plenty of experience, he said.

"One of the outgrowths of the tax decision is an increased awareness of the public of the importance of the role that the third branch of government plays in our state," he said.

Hardesty said he also would focus on a range of issues that affect all courts in the state, including overwhelming case loads and treatment of jurors.