Murder suspect Michael Chambliss appears Thursday in Justice Court. Photo by Gary Thompson. In a frame from a convenience store security video, 51-year-old Michael Chambliss, right, grapples with 26-year-old Vincent Ekeoba Moses, center, as Jocelyn Nixon tries to separate the two men. COURTESY OF CLARK COUNTY JUSTICE COURT Vincent Ekeoba Moses In video, stabbing victim slaps at woman's head

A video released by authorities Thursday shows Las Vegas civic leader Michael Chambliss stabbing a boxer to death during an argument Nov. 9 over a woman at a convenience store.

On the video, stabbing victim Vincent Ekeoba Moses, 26, is shown in an office in the rear of the 7-Eleven store on Torrey Pines Drive, near Charleston Boulevard. Moses' girlfriend, Jocelyn Nixon, stands nearby, and then Chambliss, 51, arrives at the store and gives Nixon a hug.

Police said the video shows Moses confronting Chambliss about Chambliss' relationship with Nixon.

Chambliss, who is married, told police that he and Nixon once were romantically involved years ago, but that they are now just friends.

After speaking to Chambliss, Moses slaps at Nixon's head, knocking her hat off.

Chambliss moves toward Moses, and Moses pushes him. Chambliss, who appeared to have had an open knife in hand, rapidly and repeatedly stabs Moses in the chest.

Moses falls to the floor, holding his chest. He gets up, then falls again as Nixon rushes to a phone.

Chambliss washes his hands in a sink and picks up what police think was a cell phone off the ground.

Moses died the next day, and authorities have charged Chambliss with murder, but Chambliss' defense lawyer Pete Christiansen said Thursday the videotape clearly shows Chambliss acted in self-defense.

"He was defending himself and a woman from a professional boxer who attacked him in a confined area," Christiansen said. "He had no place to retreat to."

Prosecutors Ed Kane and Marc DiGiacomo of the Clark County district attorney's office declined comment on the contents of the video Thursday. In their motion, they asked that bail be not less than $500,000 because Chambliss "attacked an unarmed man without legal justification ... not once on the video did the victim ever strike or injure (the) defendant.

"While (the) defendant may have (been) upset with the victim for slapping Ms. Nixon, (the) defendant cannot possibly claim he was entitled to kill (Moses,)" DiGiacomo wrote.

Chambliss on Thursday made his first court appearance since his Monday arrest. The courtroom of Las Vegas Justice of the Peace William Jansen was filled with Chambliss' supporters and Moses' friends. Defendants charged with murder often are held without bail, but Jansen set Chambliss' bail at $200,000, and Christiansen said he expected Chambliss would post bail and be out of jail by Thursday night.

That prospect angered Moses' friends, who said the bail amount was too low.

"Are they saying Vincent's life was worthless?" said Tony Earle, who attended church services with Moses. "That he's worth $200,000? Rapists get a higher bail."

Moses came to the United States from Nigeria in the mid-1990s and was working for Nixon as a clerk at the convenience store.

Friends said although Moses was a professional fighter, he was not aggressive or violent. He was not a successful boxer, losing four times as many bouts as he won.

Moses weighed about 160 pounds, and in the video, he appears to be smaller than Chambliss.

Ebong Ebong, a friend of Moses who is also a native of Nigeria, said Moses was "a kind and caring person."

Earle said he thought Chambliss' political connections might have won him preferential treatment from the court.

Chambliss has been a paid political consultant. He managed Clark County Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates' 2004 campaign and is a member of the Southern Nevada Workforce Investment Board. He is a past member of the Civilian Review Board, which investigates complaints about Las Vegas police conduct. He was a 19-year employee of the city of Las Vegas and worked with former Assemblyman Wendell Williams and current Assemblyman Morse Arberry, D-Las Vegas.

Williams attended the court appearance and said anyone who knows Chambliss knows he is a decent, honorable man.

"There must be some extenuating circumstances," Williams said. "It is my understanding he was trying to defend a woman from being abused. He's that kind of guy."

Patricia Cunningham said Chambliss is known as a mediator.

"If it looks like someone's losing their temper, Michael Chambliss keeps the peace," she said.