The preliminary hearing didn't seem all that complicated, even though it stretched over two days. Witnesses said they paid $36,000 cash to Clark County Recorder Frances Deane to buy copies of public records.

Because the money never ended up in the county's coffers, it sure seems as if there was enough evidence to send the case to trial, where a jury can decide whether a crime has been committed.

Deane's attorney said the witnesses weren't credible, but that's for a jury to decide. Because this is a town where federal jurors found strip club owner Michael Galardi more credible than two former county commissioners, "credible" has a pretty loosey-goosey range. But it's a jury's call.

So the biggest surprise in Deane's preliminary hearing was when Justice of the Peace Karen Bennett-Haron said she needed 70 days to decide whether there was probable cause. Say what?

She wants to reread transcripts before issuing her ruling Sept. 14.

Judges are supposed to be independent, but the lengthy delay seemed odd and unnecessary.

Most justices of the peace issue rulings from the bench or take only a little time to decide. Are the basic elements of the crime there? Yes or no. Seventy days seems like a long time to ponder, but supposedly this isn't the first time she's waited for transcripts and taken her time before reaching a decision.

(Of course, if all justices of the peace did this, the system would move even more slowly than it already does.)

District Attorney David Roger also is eager to get the hearing transcripts, probably in about three weeks. "As soon at we get the transcripts, we'll petition the District Court to remove her (Deane) from office," Roger said Friday.

He said that there is no reason for the taxpayers to keep paying Deane's salary while the case is pending and that there is enough evidence she should be removed from office even before a conviction.

Judges are supposed to be independent, but Bennett-Haron seems to be marching to a different drummer. And sometimes her timing seems off. Right after the Los Angeles Times series broke condemning certain Las Vegas judges for extending special favors to special friends, she gave Deane extra time to turn herself in and set a relatively low bail considering that the charges are 19 felonies.

Sheriff Bill Young, who is more free to speak his mind because he's not running for re-election, flipped out, enraged that Bennett-Haron allowed Deane extra time to turn herself in and blocked police from arresting her. He called it preferential treatment. A $20,000 bail amount instead of one of $57,000 also was considered special treatment by Young.

Bennett-Haron became the first black woman to serve on any Nevada court when she was appointed to the bench in May 2002 by the Clark County Commission. In 2004, she was elected to a six-year term.

Her appointment was one of the trade-offs mentioned during the political corruption trials of former Commissioners Mary Kincaid-Chauncey and Dario Herrera. When Galardi needed an extra vote on the commission on one matter, Kincaid-Chauncey suggested that to gain Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates' vote, they agree to support her choice, Bennett-Haron, for justice of the peace. Such vote trades are commonplace, and during the trial, it never was suggested that the vote trades were improper, just that they were a strategy to help Galardi.

But while most judges pride themselves on being tough on crime, Bennett-Haron hasn't taken that position. She gave low bails to defendants charged in the beating of employees at the MGM Grand, $30,000 bails that later were increased by other judges. She's more popular among defense attorneys than prosecutors.

In the most recent Review-Journal survey about judges, among all of the justices of the peace, she had the smallest number of attorneys say she should be retained. In fact, 51 percent of the attorneys said she shouldn't be retained, making her the only justice of the peace who the majority of attorneys said should get the boot.

Because she's not up for re-election until 2010, Bennett-Haron can thumb her nose at her critics. However, she's leaving the impression, true or not, that Deane is receiving special treatment. In today's judicial arena, that's an impression most judges are trying desperately to avoid.

Jane Ann Morrison's column appears Monday, Thursday and Saturday. E-mail her at Jane@reviewjournal.com or call 383-0275.