Monday, Nov. 22, 2010 | 12:45 p.m.
Outgoing Gov. Jim Gibbons fired the director of the Nevada Department of Wildlife Monday when he arrived at the governor's office to meet with the transition team for Gibbons' successor, Brian Sandoval.
Ken Mayer told The Associated Press he was given a letter by Robin Reedy, Gibbons' chief of staff, ending his employment immediately and thanking him for his service.
"I was surprised," said Mayer, who as appointed by Gibbons in 2007. "I thought I had a good relationship with Governor Gibbons, and that he appreciated the work I've done for the state of Nevada."
Reedy declined further comment.
"The director works at the pleasure of the governor and we will not comment further on personnel related matters," she said in an e-mail to the AP.
Gibbons' appointments to the nine-member state Wildlife Commission have been criticized by sportsmen and conservation groups for their emphasis on predator control, such as killing coyotes and mountain lions, to restore Nevada deer herds.
Biologists have said that loss of habitat is the main reason deer herds have been declining in the state and around the West.
Sandoval soundly defeated Gibbons in the June GOP primary, making him the first incumbent governor in state history to lose a nominating election. Since winning the general election, Sandoval has been meeting with existing cabinet members and agency chiefs, and has reappointed several to his own administration that takes office Jan. 3.
Mayer said he was to meet with Sandoval on Monday in Carson City when he was first approached by governor staff members and dismissed.
Under state law, when the position of wildlife director is vacant, the governor must make an appointment from recommendations nominated by the commission.
In July, Gibbons quietly appointed Hank Vogler, a Nevada sheep rancher who once accused state wildlife biologists of "political assassination" for killing a bighorn sheep that mingled with his flock, and reappointed Scott Raine of Eureka.
Gerald Lent, a longtime Gibbons friend, is former chairman and current member of the commission that sets wildlife policy.
Reached at his home Monday, Lent said he was unaware of Mayer's firing and that he hasn't spoken to the governor in weeks.
"Is that true? he asked when called for comment on Mayer's firing. "I believe nothing of what I hear and half what I see."
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