In its only currently listed political contribution, on March 31st, the Fahrendorf Law Offices gave $1,000 to Judge Christopher Hazlett-Stevens, who is currently running a retain campaign for Reno Municipal Court, Department 4. A few days later with Judge Hazlett-Stevens presiding, a client represented by Bob Fahrendorf, Washoe County Sheriff’s Sergeant Jason Wood pleaded no contest to reckless driving in exchange for completing DUI school level one (eight hours) and paying $778 in fees — $140 in administrative fees and a $638 fine. Two of Wood’s charges, basic speeding and failure to maintain lane or improper lane change, were dropped.
I love OurTownReno and @biggestlittlestreets and everything they do, but I disagree with the premise on this article about a local lawyer, Joe Fahrendorf , arguing a case before a judge to whom he has given a political donation. The specific case mentioned in the story resulted in the city attorneys acceptance of a guilty plea to a lesser charge.
I don't find this outcome, or the political donation, concerning. First, pleading down a DUI to reckless driving, fines, and classes is a normal outcome for DUI arrests where no harm was caused to others. Also, I have a higher bar for what distresses me about corruption in this town. Ill give you another DUI case as an example: police charged a woman, a motorcyclist,, with a DUI at the scene of a nasty wreck on wells st. on June 20th, 2021. She was badly injured with an obvious head wound yet didn't receive medical care for over an hour while responders haplessly milled about the scene. She remained in intensive care with a brain injury that certainly progressed in severity during that hour. She was charged with a DUI despite a total lack of probable cause for any blood test or other private medical data police obtained at the hospital they brought her to. Police did not attempt to interview or field test her at the scene, according to two sworn eye witnesses, nor could police have done those things with a barely conscious person. At her bench trial, she was allowed to plead guilty to careless driving, a very minor traffic ticket, indicating a tacit acknowledgement by the city attorney that the police report was factually incorrect. And though the facts were on her side, the defendant was lucky to have Joe Fahrendorf representing her....she got the best possible outcome given the situation.
Contact me for the case number or contact info for the primary eye witness from the crash if you want to fact check.
We can talk campaign finance as well...the Vintage senior living apartments just broke ground at Washington and 3rd St. This was subsidized with tens of millions in new city debt and I'm sure the "friend price" on the land, a deal that is not tendered equally to other Nevada builders, within a few months of Mayor Schieve having received $5,000 or more in political donations from each of Greenstreet and Robert Klein, the two main developers on the project. I'm happy to provide data to back up that assertion as well.
So no, Mr. Fahrendorf's competent defense of his DUI clients doesn't concern me at all. And no this isn't an ad, I am simply annoyed at the implication about Joe Fahrendorfs cavalier abuse of the municipal court. But good luck to your contributor Henry Sotelo in his run for judge, I've heard good things.
I love OurTownReno and @biggestlittlestreets and everything they do, but I disagree with the premise on this article about a local lawyer, Joe Fahrendorf , arguing a case before a judge to whom he has given a political donation. The specific case mentioned in the story resulted in the city attorneys acceptance of a guilty plea to a lesser charge.
I don't find this outcome, or the political donation, concerning. First, pleading down a DUI to reckless driving, fines, and classes is a normal outcome for DUI arrests where no harm was caused to others. Also, I have a higher bar for what distresses me about corruption in this town. Ill give you another DUI case as an example: police charged a woman, a motorcyclist,, with a DUI at the scene of a nasty wreck on wells st. on June 20th, 2021. She was badly injured with an obvious head wound yet didn't receive medical care for over an hour while responders haplessly milled about the scene. She remained in intensive care with a brain injury that certainly progressed in severity during that hour. She was charged with a DUI despite a total lack of probable cause for any blood test or other private medical data police obtained at the hospital they brought her to. Police did not attempt to interview or field test her at the scene, according to two sworn eye witnesses, nor could police have done those things with a barely conscious person. At her bench trial, she was allowed to plead guilty to careless driving, a very minor traffic ticket, indicating a tacit acknowledgement by the city attorney that the police report was factually incorrect. And though the facts were on her side, the defendant was lucky to have Joe Fahrendorf representing her....she got the best possible outcome given the situation.
Contact me for the case number or contact info for the primary eye witness from the crash if you want to fact check.
We can talk campaign finance as well...the Vintage senior living apartments just broke ground at Washington and 3rd St. This was subsidized with tens of millions in new city debt and I'm sure the "friend price" on the land, a deal that is not tendered equally to other Nevada builders, within a few months of Mayor Schieve having received $5,000 or more in political donations from each of Greenstreet and Robert Klein, the two main developers on the project. I'm happy to provide data to back up that assertion as well.
So no, Mr. Fahrendorf's competent defense of his DUI clients doesn't concern me at all. And no this isn't an ad, I am simply annoyed at the implication about Joe Fahrendorfs cavalier abuse of the municipal court. But good luck to your contributor Henry Sotelo in his run for judge, I've heard good things.
Thanks Nico Colombant and staff!