Civil Rights Advocates React to Assembly Passage of Governor’s Crime Bill

LAS VEGAS – The Nevada Assembly on Sunday voted to approve AB4, Gov. Lombardo’s regressive crime bill. Notably, remote voting was permitted for vacationing legislators on Sunday, but telephonic testimony was barred by the Assembly during the hearing on a bill that, if passed by the Senate, would see significant rollbacks for the criminal justice system while allowing casino corporations to set up a now-defunct Resort Corridor Court, which previously targeted people experiencing homelessness for criminal prosecution.

ACLU of Nevada executive director Athar Haseebullah said:

“This Special Session has been marked by processes to benefit big corporations that contribute heavily to political campaigns while cutting off public participation for working-class people. Today’s Assembly votes allowed for vacationing legislators to ‘Zoom in,’ but no such accommodations were made for people in this state to call in to oppose bills, even if disabilities prevented them from traveling. When you cut off the voices of the public, you show where your priorities are, so the Assembly passing this bill comes as no surprise.

"If passed by the Senate, this bill would effectively allow big casino corporations to reestablish their own corrupt justice court for low-level offenses that occur anywhere in the Resort Corridor, even though the streets and sidewalks and overpasses on the Strip belong to the public. Nevada taxpayers would foot the bill for that now-defunct court, which was used largely to target people experiencing homelessness, while officers like Kevin Menon engaged in practices that recklessly violated due process. The ACLU of Nevada will, of course, unapologetically continue to fight back to prevent these civil liberties abuses from happening. To the eleven members of the Nevada Assembly who voted no on this regressive bill, thank you. To assemblymembers Selena La Rue Hatch, Cinthia Moore, and Hanadi Nadeem, who refused to support any crime bill that failed to include any protections for people against ICE impersonations and kidnappings, your courage and leadership is evident, and we thank you for standing with our communities."

Clark County chief deputy public defender John Piro said:

"Crime has steadily been going down since 2019, with the smart-on-crime changes that happened that year in the Legislature. Those changes were data-driven and evidence-based. Nevertheless, the Nevada Legislature is moving the governor’s crime bill forward in this emergency session, even though it failed this summer in the regular session. Let’s be clear, reviving this failed policy is not an emergency; the bill is not evidence-based, it’s not research-backed, and it’s not transparent. In fact, this bill is an unresearched wish list for the governor’s friend, Washoe County DA Chris Hicks, who is seeking to boost his failing political campaign. This is a bill that will hurt communities, put immigrants at further risk of law enforcement contact, and will pack the prisons with low-level offenders. Nevadans should reject this harmful measure.

Washoe County public defender Evelyn Grosenick said:

“AB4 is a step backwards in criminal legal reform. No data was provided to support aspects of the bill that increase the prison pipeline and provide for longer sentences. These measures undermine AB236’s (2019) evidence-based approach to improving public safety.”

Fines and Fees Justice Center Nevada state director Nick Shepack said:

“We are disappointed with the Assembly passage of the crime bill. As written, this bill will create a revolving door of fines, fees, and incarceration for our most vulnerable citizens. The nearly complete lack of stadholder and public input on this measure is shameful and has resulted in a policy that will do little to address crime but will have a real negative impact on our communities. We can’t fine, fee, and arrest our way to safety.”