2012 Voter Guide: District Court Judge Department 20

The race for the Department 20 District Court judgeship probably couldn't be more polite.

Judge Jerry Tao and defense lawyer Chris Rasmussen, both sons of college professors, have nothing bad to say about each other.

"He's a gentleman and a bright lawyer," Rasmussen said of Tao.

And Rasmussen has "always been very nice. Fortunately it's been a very positive campaign," Tao said.

Tao was appointed in January 2011 by Gov. Brian Sandoval to replace David Wall, who resigned in the midst of his six-year term.

Tao said Wall encouraged him to apply for the judgeship. Wall had been Tao's team leader when he worked for the Clark County district attorney's office.

Tao traveled a unique road to becoming a judge. He was born in Taiwan, son to Chinese immigrants who left China after the Communist revolution and emigrated to Virginia. His father was a political science professor before becoming a lawyer and his mother worked as a translator for the federal government.

After graduating from New York's Cornell University and George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C., Tao worked for a private firm in Los Angeles.

He then took a job as a legislative aide for Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nevada, working on specific issues including defense, labor and agriculture, before becoming the senator's speech writer.

Eventually, Tao wanted to get back to practicing law and moved to Las Vegas. After working as a county prosecutor and a deputy public defender, Tao, with Wall's encouragement, sought the judgeship.

Even with a strong background in government and politics, Tao said he has no desire to seek another political office.

"I love being a judge and helping the community," said Tao, who is the county's first Asian-American District Court judge in the civil and criminal division.

Local lawyers seem to like him as a judge. Eighty percent of lawyers who responded to Tao's questionnaire in the Las Vegas Review-Journal's Judging the Judges poll voted to retain him.

"The most important thing for a judge is to be prepared and informed, fair and impartial," Tao said. But preparation is the key, he said. "We have the highest case load in the country. It's a real challenge. I work late and most weekends. But if the attorneys have to come prepared, I should be prepared also," Tao said.

Meanwhile, Rasmussen has achieved a high profile as a criminal defense attorney, notably helping defend members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club following the infamous 2002 Laughlin River Run shooting.

A native of Las Vegas, Rasmussen graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and Washington's Gonzaga University School of Law. He has been practicing law for 13 years.

Rasmussen's father was a psychology professor at UNLV and his mother was a nurse at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center.

"I think I have a better understanding of the local community," Rasmussen said. "I was raised and educated in our town."

Rasmussen added he has broad experience in different areas of law that should appeal to voters.

Contact reporter Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039.