Douglas named to high court

Friday, March 26, 2004 | 11:16 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn today named District Judge Michael L. Douglas of Las Vegas to the Nevada Supreme Court. Douglas is the first black to be a member of the court.

Douglas, 56, succeeds Myron Leavitt, who died in January, and will serve until next January. Douglas, chief judge among the Clark County District Court judges, previously said he planned to run for the court, even before he was named.

Guinn said Douglas "has impeccable credentials and is a worthy addition" to the court. He called Douglas a "man of great intellect with all of the positive character traits that have always distinguished the great justices of our state."

Douglas said he was "greatly honored" to be named to the Supreme Court.

"I am extremely excited for the opportunity to work with the other justices during a very important juncture in the history of our state," he said.

Douglas will be sworn in on May 3 in Carson City. He said that will give him 30 days to clean up his business on the district court.

He said he was looking forward to his new position and had worked with many of the justices before. He said he didn't think being the first black on the court would be a problem.

"I don't see it as an issue," he said. "Our state has moved on."

He said he will discuss with the justices whether he will move to Carson City or continue to live in Las Vegas. He said that decision must be made before he can hire staff.

Douglas said he initially intended to run for the Supreme Court to succeed Chief Justice Miriam Shearing, the first female justice, who is retiring. But now he will run to replace Leavitt.

The state Judicial Selection Commission had nominated Douglas and attorneys Gregory Smith of Las Vegas and David Hunter of Reno for the job. Guinn said Smith and Hunter had "impressive credentials."

The appointment means there is a vacant judgeship in Clark County. The selection commission is expected to announce it will be accepting applicants and will nominate three to the governor who makes the final decision.

Douglas moved to Las Vegas in 1982 from California. He worked for two years as staff attorney and directing attorney for Nevada Legal Services in Clark County. From November 1984 to December 1995, he was a deputy district attorney and he has been on the bench in Clark County since 1996.

He has received the National Federation of Black Public Administrators Mark of Excellence Award in 1996; the Black Law Students Association's Western Region Community Service Award in 1998 and the Distinguished Men in Southern Nevada Award 1998-2004.

Douglas was born in Los Angeles where he graduated from Dorsey High School. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Long Beach in 1971, and he is a 1974 graduate of the University of California's Hastings College of Law in San Francisco.