Chiropractor faces decision on discipline

A Las Vegas chiropractor must wait at least two more weeks before learning whether he will face professional discipline for causing a man's death during a 2005 altercation.

The Chiropractic Physicians' Board of Nevada heard nearly 10 hours of testimony Friday without reaching a decision on a complaint filed earlier this year against Stephen B. Shaw, who pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and received probation in a related criminal case. The board is expected to conclude the hearing on Dec. 15.

Among those who testified Friday was District Judge Michelle Leavitt, who witnessed portions of the March 11, 2005, incident. After the hearing, Leavitt was reluctant to give her opinion when asked whether the board should revoke Shaw's license.

"Maybe you should ask me if I would ever go to him as a patient," she told a reporter. "Never. And I would never refer anyone to him."

Friday marked the first time Leavitt has testified about the incident, which occurred at Fabulous Freddy's car wash and gasoline station at Fort Apache Road and Charleston Boulevard.

The administrative hearing was held to address a complaint filed by Linda Edwards of Ketchum, Idaho. The woman's 60-year-old brother, Las Vegas resident Lawrence Weiss, suffered fatal head injuries after Shaw shoved him and caused him to fall.

According to the complaint, disciplinary action is warranted against Shaw, 38, because he engaged in unprofessional conduct. Edwards wants the board to revoke Shaw's license.

Leavitt said she was getting her car washed at Fabulous Freddy's when she heard a man shouting.

"It was very loud," the judge said. "My instincts told me there was something terribly wrong."

As she approached, Leavitt saw a man fall to the ground, where he lay bleeding and unconscious.

"It was very apparent to me that his condition was very serious," Leavitt said.

The judge said she then watched as a younger and taller man stood over the older man, pointed down at him and said, "Next time, pick on someone your own size." She said the younger man repeated the comment several times.

"I thought it was extremely strange, because I thought he should probably take his own advice," Leavitt said.

She described the younger man as "very buff." She said he appeared "very angry, very agitated," and fled the scene without trying to render aid to the injured man.

"I was very concerned about this elderly gentleman," Leavitt said. "To this day it's taken a kind of toll on me, having to observe that."

The judge said she did not know the victim had died until she read about the incident in the newspaper.

Shaw pleaded guilty in March to involuntary manslaughter, a felony, for causing the death of Weiss, a retired record company executive. Shaw entered a type of guilty plea that required him to admit only that prosecutors could prove their case against him.

Although probation officials recommended a prison term of 12 to 30 months, District Judge Donald Mosley sentenced Shaw to five years of probation.

Shaw originally faced a charge of second-degree murder, but Mosley dismissed the charge in November 2005. Mosley said prosecutors had no evidence indicating that Shaw intended to kill Weiss.

Cindy Wade, executive director of the Chiropractic Physicians' Board, said she would have filed a complaint against Shaw if Edwards had not. According to Nevada law governing chiropractors, the record of a felony conviction "is conclusive evidence of unprofessional conduct."

Wade said Shaw has been licensed in Nevada since 1997 and has no discipline on his record. If the board finds that he has engaged in unprofessional conduct, his discipline could range from a public reprimand to license revocation.

Shaw testified that he rushed to Fabulous Freddy's after receiving a call from his wife, Raquel, who told him a man had attacked her as she sat in her vehicle with the couple's two daughters. He said he took off his work shirt as he exited his vehicle at the scene.

"If I had to get into a fight, if I had to get physical, I didn't want the advantage to go to the entity I was going to face," Shaw told the chiropractic board.

He said his wife directed him to Weiss, who was looking toward her vehicle. Shaw said he immediately pushed the man, believing he posed a threat to his wife and children.

The chiropractor testified that he left the scene without realizing that Weiss had suffered life-threatening injuries.

Witnesses told police that Weiss believed Raquel Shaw had cut him off on the road before entering Fabulous Freddy's and that the two had exchanged words about the traffic incident.

The victim's wife, Sheri, is pursuing a lawsuit against the Shaws and Fabulous Freddy's. Raquel Shaw is expected to testify before the board at its next meeting in Las Vegas.

Shaw testified that he once played quarterback for UNLV's football team, that he has had martial-arts training, and that his business sponsors ultimate fighters.

He said he personally has been involved in only one fistfight, which occurred when he was 20.

Contact reporter Carri Geer Thevenot at cgeer@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0264.