Justin Jones (politician)

Justin Christopher Jones (born November 19, 1974) is an American attorney and politician. He is currently the Clark County Commissioner for District F since 2019 and served as a member of the Nevada Senate for the 9th district from 2012 to 2014.^[1] He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Biography[]

Jones was born in Granada Hills, California and grew up in California and Utah. Jones served a service mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Guatemala. He received his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Brigham Young University and his J.D. degree from George Washington University Law School. After law school, Jones served as a law clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Roger L. Hunt before going into private practice as an attorney in Las Vegas. Jones is currently a partner with the law firm of Jones Lovelock. Jones provides pro bono representation for child victims of domestic abuse and neglect through the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada.^[2][3] Justin has also served as counsel for Save Red Rock in its lengthy fight to prevent sprawl development in Red Rock Canyon.^[2] Justin has served on several community boards, including the United Way of Southern Nevada, Volunteer Center of Southern Nevada (past Chair), Nevadans for Background Checks, Battle Born Progress (past President), and Emerge Nevada.^[2]

Jones is married to Las Vegas native Megan Krausman. Justin and Megan have two children, Gabby and Liam.^[2]

Political career[]

Jones ran for the Nevada Senate in 2012. He defeated Fred Conquest in the Democratic primary in June 2012 by a margin of 82.5% to 17.5%.^[4] He defeated Mari Nakashima St. Martin in the general election on November 6, 2012 by 301 votes.^[5] During the 2013 legislative session, Jones served as Assistant Majority Whip, Chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, and on the Judiciary and Commerce and Labor Committees.^[6]

Jones was defeated by Becky Harris in 2014.^[7]

Jones previously ran unsuccessfully in 2004 for the Nevada Assembly against Chad Christensen.^[8]

On May 22, 2017, Jones announced that he is running as a Democratic candidate for Clark County Commission, District F in 2018.^[1]

Controversies[]

Representation of Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Jones has been subject to a number of controversies throughout his political and legal career. In October 2010 the Las Vegas Sands Corp., represented by attorney Justin Jones, was brought into a lawsuit alleging that the company wrongfully terminated a former employee, Sands China CEO Steven Jacobs.^[9] During a June 2012 court proceeding, information became available that Las Vegas Sands Corp. had access to a computer hard drive containing over 100,000 emails that provided evidence of Jacobs unlawful termination. Las Vegas Sands Corp insisted that this hard drive was located in Macau, and was therefore unable to be used as evidence due to the Personal Data Protection Act laws of the country.^[10] In September 2012, Justin Jones testified in court that he and other lawyers of Las Vegas Sands Corp. had in fact reviewed the emails while located in Las Vegas at the time. When asked by a prosecuting attorney what actions he took in court when the defendant Las Vegas Sands Corp. insisted the files were inaccessible, Jones responded, "I did nothing."^[11]

Ultimately, Sands Corp. and their legal team - including Justin Jones - were fined $25,000 for what was considered "very serious violations of duties of candor to the court" by state District Court Judge Elizabeth Gonzales. This fine called into question his integrity while running for Nevada State Senate in 2012. However, Jones insisted throughout his campaign that he was "proud of his legal career", and was not named in the District Court Judge's reprimand of Las Vegas Sands Corp.^[12]

Clark County Commission Lawsuit 2019

Jones has been accused by mining company Gypsum Resources LLC of misleading the state ethics commission as well as influencing political support for Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak in exchange for “political favors.”^[13] These allegations stem from a lengthy battle by Gypsum Resources to develop residential structures on rural land overlooking Red Rock Canyon in Clark County, Nevada. The original proposal, which was announced in 2003, detailed a plan to develop 5,500 residential homes on a piece of property named Blue Diamond Hill overlooking the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. In response to this plan, the Clark County Commission created a zoning ordinance for the area, limiting the amount of development allowed. Gypsum Resources LLC owner Jim Rhodes sued the commission and the federal court ruled in the developer’s favor. In 2011 Gypsum Resources was approved to develop 7,000 residential homes on Blue Diamond Hill – 1,500 more than previously proposed.^[14] This ignited opposition from the nonprofit activist group Save Red Rock, and through outspoken public forums, the organization was able to convince all county planners to deny Gypsum Resources’ development proposal.^[15] In July 2019, after multiple failed attempts to develop Blue Diamond Hill, Gypsum Resources LLC filed for bankruptcy.^[16] In May of that year, Gypsum Resources opened a lawsuit against Clark County and its commissioners, alleging that elected officials “violated the right to due process” and “failed to act in good faith when reviewing paperwork related to the project”, resulting in financial damages of more than $1 billion, which caused the bankruptcy.^[17] This lawsuit also sought a court order to prevent Clark County Commissioner Justin Jones from voting on any Gypsum Resources proposal, citing his conflict of interest as a previous attorney to Save Red Rock.

In addition to Gypsum’s claims that Jones and the Clark County Commission is responsible for their 2019 bankruptcy, Gypsum Resources attests that Clark County and its leaders conducted “governmental misconduct.”^[13] They claim that Jones and gubernatorial candidate at the time Steve Sisolak “traded favors” – Save Red Rock dropping a lawsuit against the county in exchange for Sisolak’s vote against a waiver permitting Gypsum Resources to push their 2011 project proposal forward without first receiving approval from the Bureau of Land Management to build an access road. Additionally, this “favor” would help Sisolak garner support from the environmentalist political groups in his campaign for governor. Evidence of this came to light in emails sent by Jones to Sisolak’s campaign manager. These emails detailed a resolution in which Jones would dismiss all claims in Save Red Rock’s lawsuit against the county if Sisolak committed to denying Gypsum Resources’ waiver. Jones is quoted as saying that it would "likely be uncomfortable” for Sisolak and other members of the county commission if Save Red Rock’s lawsuit went to trial.^[13] The denial of this waiver brought forth by communications between Jones and Sisolak resulted in the stifling of the Blue Diamond Hill development project. Valued at over $150 million, Gypsum Resources claims that this stifling was a large contributing factor in their file for bankruptcy.^{[citation needed]} At this time, the claims put forth by Gypsum Resources LLC have yet to be legally addressed.

References[]

External links[]

• Senate biography