Wednesday, May 28, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Judge chided for taking Galardi political donation

Las Vegas Municipal Court judge candidate Denise McCurry on Tuesday criticized Municipal Judge Toy Gregory for accepting a campaign contribution from Jack Galardi, whose topless club was raided by the FBI earlier this month as part of a political corruption probe.

At a news conference on the steps of Las Vegas City Hall, McCurry said she wanted the public to know Gregory had taken $1,000 from Galardi.

"The public needs to be concerned about who gives money," she said. "They need to be concerned about where campaign donations come from and what they are going to buy. Why was it given?"

Asked whether other judges and elected officials who accepted money from Jack Galardi or his son Mike should be called to task as well, she hesitated before answering, "There have to be concerns."

Gregory's response: "Isn't she the one who said it was unethical to run a negative campaign? It seems to me that's what this is."

Gregory's donation from Jack Galardi was accepted Jan. 30, more than three months before the family's clubs and businesses in Las Vegas and San Diego were raided by FBI agents May 14.

Jack Galardi's attorney, John Momot, declined to say Tuesday whet his client has received notification he is a target of the two-year probe. However, the search warrant and returns indicate the probe is focusing on whether Jack Galardi has any hidden ownership in the clubs. Mike Galardi's attorney, Peter Christiansen, has said Jack and Mike Galardi own Cheetah's in Las Vegas and that Mike Galardi owns Jaguars in Las Vegas and Cheetah's in San Diego.

Paul Brown, who monitors campaign donations as Southern Nevada Director of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, called McCurry's comments "a little opportunism."

"Her general analysis on campaign contributions is probably correct but to zero in on just one donation is incorrect," Brown said. "Whether we like the Galardis or not, they're a legitimate business here in town. They're entitled to give campaign contributions like anybody else."

Campaign reports due Tuesday showed McCurry has received $16,735 in contributions since the start of the campaign and Gregory has received $224,625. She is $31,523 in debt and he has $57,410 cash on hand.

The warrants in Las Vegas also sought evidence of "payments or gifts" to various elected officials, including Las Vegas City Councilman Michael McDonald, former County Commissioner Erin Kenny and her husband, John, former County Commissioner Dario Herrera and his wife, Emily, County Commission Chairwoman Mary Kincaid-Chauncey and her husband, Robert, and to unidentified building inspectors.

Former County Commissioner Lance Malone is not mentioned by name in the warrants, although law enforcement sources have said wiretaps on his phone picked up conversations he had with the Galardis, Kenny, Kincaid-Chauncey and Herrera.

Kincaid-Chauncey and Kenny have acknowledged they are targets. McDonald is the only one so far to say he is not a target.

Attorneys for Mike Galardi, Malone and Herrera have declined to say whether their clients are targets.

McCurry said she wasn't trying to suggest Gregory is a target of the investigation, nor was she calling the donation "dirty money."

"We have to be concerned that the Galardis have given money to exert some influence," McCurry said.

Gregory said he met Jack Galardi once in the chambers of the late Municipal Judge Seymore Brown. He also said he wrote him a letter asking for a donation for the Department 1 race after he looked at lists of donors to other judges.

Ted Jelen, chairman of the political science department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, doubted that McCurry's statements will make much difference in her race. "Voter esteem for the political process has become about as low as it can be and my guess is this will not matter much."

Numerous candidates have accepted donations in recent elections from members of the Galardi family, including Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman ($10,500), Assessor Mark Schofield ($5,000), Nevada Supreme Court Justice Bill Maupin ($5,000), Nevada Supreme Court Justice Mark Gibbons ($5,000), Nevada Supreme Court Justice Myron Leavitt ($500), District Judge Lee Gates ($5,000), Las Vegas Constable Robert Gronauer ($5,000), District Judge Nancy Saitta ($5,000), District Judge Donald Mosley ($5,000), District Judge David Wall ($5,000), and Municipal Judge George Assad ($5,000).

District Attorney David Roger accepted $10,000 but returned the donations. Roger said he originally accepted the money because the clubs are legal businesses, but he returned it once the County Commission announced its intent to revise its ordinances regarding lap dances.

Mike and Paulina Galardi donated $10,000 to the Nevada Democratic Party.

Mike Galardi also donated $1,000 to Las Vegas Councilwoman Lynette Boggs McDonald's 2002 congressional race.

Kenny accepted $5,000 from Mike Galardi on Oct. 11, 2001 when she was running for re-election to the Clark County commission. She later rolled the donation over to her unsuccessful lieutenant governor's race.

Herrera did not report receiving any Galardi money for any of his races: a 1996 run for the Assembly, his 1998 county commission race or his unsuccessful bid for Congress. His reports do show donations from other topless club owners.

Kincaid-Chauncey did not report any Galardi donations, but she accepted at least $1,000 in contributions from Galardi competitor Rick Rizzolo, owner of Crazy Horse Too, which also was raided this year in what FBI officials describe as an investigation separate from the Galardi businesses.

Although some candidates have a policy of declining contributions from sexually oriented businesses, club owners such as Rizzolo and Pete Eliades of Olympic Garden have seen their donations welcomed.