Hearing master may look into process server’s case

A process serving scandal in Las Vegas Justice Court is so extensive it requires a special hearing master to determine if the rights of thousands of civil case defendants were harmed, court officials said Thursday.

"The number of cases that may be involved is overwhelming," Justice of the Peace Melissa Saragosa said. "The court is very concerned about default judgments that may have been wrongly entered based on fraudulent affidavits. We are still trying to get a handle on the situation to determine how far it extends and what the court may be able to do in response."

Court Executive Officer Steve Grierson said officials plan to ask the county for $60,000 to hire a hearing master, and may need more money if the damage assessment requires additional work.

At the center of the process serving scandal is Maurice Carroll, a 41-year-old former Las Vegas police officer, and his company, On Scene Mediations, which authorities believe has operated without a license since 2003.

Carroll has been charged with filing 17 false affidavits in Justice Court this year. He posted a $35,000 bond Thursday morning and was expected to be released from the Clark County Detention Center, said his lawyer, Craig Mueller.

A criminal complaint alleges Carroll lied in the affidavits, swearing that he had served defendants with copies of court papers in lawsuits filed by Richland Holdings, a debt collection agency.

The affidavits allowed Richland Holdings to obtain default judgments against the defendants after they failed to respond to the lawsuits.

Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, a lawyer who runs the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada, said she is concerned about the scandal's repercussions beyond the criminal case.

"What's staggering about this is the potential number of people who may have had their rights violated," Buckley said. "It is a daunting task for the court to straighten this out. It is really frightening to contemplate that a very large number of people may not have been served and were deprived of their day in court."

Buckley said the legal aide center, which represents people who can't afford to hire lawyers in civil cases, has set up a hot line, 868-1136, for any victims of On Scene Mediations needing legal advice.

"We'll represent anyone who is a victim of this sewer service," Buckley said, using courthouse slang for a process server who throws papers down a sewer while claiming they were properly delivered.

Intelligence Lt. Dave Logue said police have received calls from people hit with default judgments as far back as 2004 claiming Carroll's company never served them court papers.

Justice Court officials and police said they also have uncovered questionable activity by On Scene Mediations in default judgments obtained by payday loan company Rapid Cash. No criminal charges have been filed in any cases involving Rapid Cash.

Saragosa said a computer search shows that since January 2004 Rapid Cash and Richland Holdings have obtained a total of 19,735 default judgments in Justice Court.

Saragosa stressed that the search did not determine the prevalence of false affidavits in those judgments, when the companies started using On Scene Mediations, or whether the companies also used other process servers.

But Saragosa said On Scene Mediations was the only process server the two companies used in the default cases that have come before her in the past year.

Records show Rapid Cash obtained 3,827 default judgments in 2009 and Richland Holdings got 142, Saragosa said.

Sean Hillin and Kevin Hansen, attorneys for Rapid Cash and Richland Holdings, respectively, did not return phone calls on Thursday.

Saragosa said a third On Scene Mediations client, Budget Loans, has now surfaced, and officials are trying to determine whether Carroll's company submitted false affidavits in cases related to that company.

Hillin also represents Budget Loans.

Carroll, a Las Vegas police officer from 1990 to 2000, faces 35 felony charges, including perjury and filing false court documents.

Mueller said he is not impressed with the prosecution's case.

"So far, I'm underwelmed by the evidence that prosecutors have turned over to me," Mueller said.

The case took a slight turn on Tuesday, when prosecutors began presenting evidence against Carroll to a county grand jury, law enforcement sources said.

Prosecutors seek an indictment on the same charges in the complaint to avoid having to call a large number of witnesses at an Aug. 16 preliminary hearing before Justice of the Peace Joe Bonaventure.

If Carroll is indicted before the preliminary hearing, the criminal complaint will be dismissed, and the new case will go directly to a district judge for trial.

By taking the case to District Court, prosecutors also can avoid a possible conflict of interest in Justice Court.

Mueller suggested earlier this week that Bonaventure might have a conflict because Saragosa and Justice of the Peace Diana Sullivan are likely witnesses against Carroll.

Police have credited Saragosa and Sullivan with uncovering the alleged false affidavit scheme.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135 or read more courts coverage at lvlegalnews.com.