Tuesday, May 04, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Party files complaints
Chairman says workers prevented petitioners from collecting signatures
By ED VOGEL
REVIEW-JOURNAL CAPITAL BUREAU
CARSON CITY -- Complaints were filed Monday against unidentified state and local government workers accused of preventing circulators of petitions from collecting signatures.
Independent American Party Chairman Christopher Hansen filed the complaints with Las Vegas police and Secretary of State Dean Heller. The secretary of state is the state's chief election officer.
Hansen asked them to charge government workers with gross misdemeanor crimes and to fine them $20,000 as allowed by sections of Nevada law. The complaints were filed against two Nevada Highway Patrol officers, several Department of Motor Vehicles employees, officials with UNLV and others.
Although he did not name them, Hansen said he can identify them by their positions and badge information.
"The next time we are threatened with arrest, the shoe will be on the other foot as we will be calling police to arrest these anti-democracy criminals," he added. "We want enforcement of this law to protect petitioning, which is the most direct form of democracy in our Nevada Republic."
His party is participating in the Nevadans for Sound Government effort to collect enough signatures to let voters in the November election consider throwing out the $833 million tax increase approved by the 2003 Legislature. They also are collecting signatures for a petition to prevent government employees from serving in the Legislature.
Hansen's brother, Joel, last week announced he will ask the Supreme Court for a 60-day extension to complete signature gathering. Joel Hansen is a Las Vegas lawyer.
He said the group has failed to collect enough signatures because of constant harassment by government workers. The deadline to collect 51,234 signatures for the tax petition is May 18.
Heller said Monday he has not reviewed the complaint, but he called it bogus.
"I think this is just an effort to push their 60-day extension of the petition process," he said. "They haven't been able to collect enough signatures."
The secretary of state denied Hansen's claims that he was rebuffed when he called Heller's office to complain about treatment by local government workers.