Search under way for new Henderson city attorney

By Aida Ahmed

Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011 | 2:31 p.m.

The process of finding a new city attorney is under way in Henderson, and officials hope to fill the position within 30 days.

The former city attorney, Elizabeth Quillin, resigned in early August after being arrested in May during the workday on misdemeanor counts of DUI-first offense, leaving the scene of an accident with property damage and having an open container in a vehicle.

At Tuesday’s City Council meeting, members voted to begin the process of filling the position.

Fred Horvath, the city’s human resources director, said he has received 45 applicants and plans to narrow the list to six to eight candidates before the council starts interviews on Nov. 2 and 3.

“Council is looking for someone with management experience over a large legal office,” Horvath said. “They’re looking for someone, I think, that can take us forward in a very positive, progressive manner. We’re looking for someone who has experience in both the public and private sector if at all possible.”

“We kept our recruitment pretty much to the state of Nevada, so we didn’t do a lot of national search,” Horvath said. “We’re very happy with the pool.”

The city is not releasing the names of the candidates. The position pays a $190,000 annual salary, not including benefits.

Quillin, who served as Henderson city attorney for two years received a $99,500 severance package. The package included accrued vacation time and 10 months of insurance coverage, worth about $3,800.

She has since taken a plea agreement in her case and was ordered to pay a $585 fine, attend a DUI class and attend a victim impact panel.

Christine Guerci-Nyhus is serving as interim city attorney.