Appeal by ex-UNLV police rejected

CARSON CITY -- A Nevada Supreme Court panel threw out an appeal Thursday filed by three former UNLV police officers who had accused the university system of defaming them during a period when university police were under fire over allegations of using excessive force on students.

Justice Don Cherry wrote in a 3-0 decision that Ron Cuzze, Brian Dias and Terence Jenkinson did not provide an "accurate and complete record" on which the court could judge their appeal.

He also said the three officers did not provide information to challenge a lower court decision that they pay $21,500 in attorneys' fees that the University of Nevada, Las Vegas incurred in fighting the case.

Clark County District Judge Michelle Leavitt earlier in a summary judgment threw out a lawsuit brought by the officers against UNLV. The police, who maintained their privacy and civil rights had been violated, appealed her decision to the Supreme Court.

The three officers filed the lawsuit in 2000, after more than a year of tension between the UNLV Police Department and the university community.

In 1999, one student accused Cuzze of using a racial epithet during the student's arrest, and a military-style drug raid by officers on a student dormitory led to student protests and the suspension of at least two officers.

In the lawsuit, the officers said the university system made statements to "vilify, discredit and degrade" them.

Since the police did not include documents on which their appeal could be judged, Cherry said the court had "no way to meaningfully review the District Court's order for error." Consequently, he said, justices must presume "the missing opposition supports the District Court's decision."

Cherry pointed out that in their legal briefs UNLV lawyers stated the officers had not included these documents, but they still "failed to take any steps to supplement their appendix with the missing documents."

The three police officers and other members of the UNLV Police Department were mentioned in stories in the campus newspaper and the Review-Journal in 1999 and 2000 over incidents involving students.

In one story, university system Regent Doug Hill said the officers acted like "Keystone Cops" and flagrantly violated department procedures when searching a UNLV dormitory.

Review-Journal writer Lawrence Mower contributed to this report.