LV City Council candidate mudslinging continues

Dan Kulin

Thursday, May 26, 2005 | 9:49 a.m.

Las Vegas City Council candidate Steve Ross' former campaign manager, who is now working for his opponent, Mary Gillins, accuses Ross of lying to him and the media in a letter arriving at thousands of voters' homes this week.

Ross and his campaign manager, Gary Gray, said they believe Gillins is behind the letter, which they called a desperate attempt to attack Ross in the final weeks of the campaign. Election Day is June 7, and early voting started Saturday for the Ward 6 council race.

"Mary Gillins continues to pay people to say bad things about Steve Ross," Gray said.

Billy Rogers, head of Southwest Strategies and Ross' former campaign manager who now works on Gillins' campaign, and 10 other former Ross campaign workers signed the letter. Rogers said they produced and mailed the letter on their own without any involvement from Gillins.

Gillins, who promised to cease personal attacks following the April primary, did not return telephone messages seeking comment Wednesday.

But her campaign manager, Jim Ferrence said, "Mary Gillins had nothing to do with the letter in question and the campaign had nothing to do with the letter."

The letter claims Ross lied to his former campaign workers about his past run-ins with law enforcement. It says Ross told them in December that he was involved in "domestic incident" with his former wife but did not hit her.

In 1991 Ross was arrested for domestic battery. The charges were later dismissed, but Ross has said he did hit his ex-wife once.

Ross, 42, also paid a fine to settle a charge related to his trying to steal parts from a neighbor's car when he was 20.

Ross has said he was wrong in both incidents and has turned his life around since then, becoming more involved with his church and family.

The letter goes on to say that when Rogers questioned Ross about the two arrests, Ross asked if the arrest reports could be sealed or expunged.

Ross said Rogers is the one who is lying, and said the claims in the letter are false.

"He is paid by my opponent," Ross said. "It's an act of desperation."

Ross also called Rogers' challenge to have the candidate take a lie detector test "lame."

"If anybody should be taking a polygraph, they should," Gray said.

Rogers said Ross' denial is "another lie" from the candidate. He said they decided to send the letter because they want voters to know about Ross' character, and not because they are working for Gillins.

"We did it on our own, and it's not personal, the man lied to us," Rogers said.

Gray said the letter is only the latest in Gillins' sponsored attacks against Ross.

Gray said incumbent Ward 6 Councilman Michael Mack is supporting Gillins and criticizing Ross because Mack works for Rogers' Southwest Strategies.

Mack has said his support for Gillins is based primarily on the candidates' opposing stands on a proposed sales tax increase pegged to go toward hiring more police.

The tax increase would have to be approved by the Clark County Commission, and not the City Council. However, Ross said he would use his position on the council, if elected, to lobby against the increase. Ross has said there is other money available to pay for more police, but he has not said exactly where that money is.

Gillins, who works for the Metro Police union and whose husband is a Metro officer, supports the sales tax increase. But Gillins has said the issue is not one for the council race because the council will not vote on the increase.

Gillins has also said she would work to lower the city's property tax rate, but she doesn't know where budget cuts should be made to afford a tax cut.

Ross and Rogers also disagree over whether Rogers was fired or he quit Ross' campaign.