Rural Nevada judges growing road-weary

Friday, Jan. 21, 2005 | 9:54 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- Have robe, will travel.

That's the story of the district court judges in rural Nevada where they spend an average of 22 percent of their time on the road, traveling from courthouse to courthouse.

A report by the state Administrative Office of the Court, released Thursday, said the "rural judges of Nevada face the increasing stress and fatigue of traveling throughout their districts after working already long days in the courthouse."

Chief Justice Nancy Becker of the Nevada Supreme Court said the report "details the extra effort, dedication, and time that rural district judges commit just to get to some county seats, even before they take the bench to conduct the business of the court."

The report said the two judges in the 25,531-square-mile fifth Judicial District that includes Nye, Mineral and Esmeralda counties, drove 37,414 miles last fiscal year. That's the most of any of the four rural districts.

The two judges in 23,668-square-mile Seventh Judicial District that includes Eureka, Lincoln and White Pine counties drove about 18,000 miles last fiscal year -- the fewest of any of the four rural districts.

The report said that "as the stress and fatigue have increased, few additional resources have been made available to keep pace with these challenges."

A report by a Commission on Rural Courts in 2003 found many of the courthouses in rural Nevada were built a century ago and remain in use at the present. Most of the old courthouses do not meet the requirements of the American with Disabilities Act.