EDITORIAL: Henderson constable writes himself a few checks

Henderson Constable Earl Mitchell has apparently been using his office as a taxpayer-funded ATM. Where were the county officials who were supposed to monitor his finances?

Mr. Mitchell on Wednesday announced he would not seek a seventh term. His decision came hours before the Review-Journal’s Arthur Kane reported that Mr. Mitchell over the past two years had written himself more than $70,000 in checks from an account created to pay his deputies.

In addition, Mr. Kane discovered that Mr. Mitchell had withdrawn about $9,000 in cash from two holding accounts, making many of the transactions at casinos or bars.

“People are put into a position of trust, and when someone abuses it, that is problematic,” Clark County Commission Chairman Steve Sisolak told the Review-Journal. “If what you’re telling me is right, we have to look into it.”

That’s an understatement.

All this comes barely four years after county officials implemented reforms intended to better track the finances of constable offices in Henderson and North Las Vegas. Previously, those constables — whose offices serve eviction notices and other legal documents — used the fees generated to pay deputies with little oversight. As part of the changes, the county took control of the fees and now doles out money every two weeks to pay deputies and other costs — which totals about $20,000 per fortnight.

But what good are these reforms if the county doesn’t audit the accounts? Mr. Kane reports that “$151,000 of the nearly $1 million Mitchell requested in 2016 and 2017 for deputy pay was not paid to deputies.” Surely a thorough evaluation of the constable’s books would have turned up this discrepancy. Yet the county auditor’s office has failed to conduct any recent examinations of these books.

County officials need to do more than simply “look into it.” Auditors should descend on Mr. Mitchell’s office as soon as possible to determine how long these shenanigans have been going on. At the same time, the county should cut off Mr. Mitchell’s access to the accounts in question. If it’s determined that he violated the law, he should be prosecuted.

In the meantime, it’s time to re-examine the constable model — particularly in Southern Nevada’s urban areas — given that scandals involving these offices seem routine.

County commissioners have already eliminated the Las Vegas constable’s position and turned over its duties to the Metropolitan Police Department. That came after Constable John Bonaventura was indicted on theft and wiretapping charges. In North Las Vegas, Constable Robert Eliason is suing to keep his job even though he has failed to become certified as required by law.

“Since problems keep coming up,” said Mr. Sisolak, “it might be time to take a look.”

He’s correct. And it’s also time to take a look at how Mr. Mitchell for the past two years — at least — was able to drain a county-funded account for his personal use without anyone noticing.