Krolicki rejects chance to remove attorney general from his prosecution

Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki rejected an opportunity to disqualify the attorney general from his criminal prosecution today after it was disclosed the husband of Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto is holding a fund-raiser for one of Krolicki’s political opponents.

“This offer is too little, too late,” said Krolicki’s attorney Richard Wright at the beginning of an hour-long hearing to determine if the case shouldn’t be dismissed for lack of evidence.

Wright said another delay in the case would effectively ruin Krolicki’s election chances next year. Krolicki said he intends to seek a second term as lieutenant governor after serving two terms as state treasurer. After the hearing, Wright told reporters the case against Krolicki and Besser is a “partisan prosecution” and said the state should dismiss the case.

Krolicki and his former chief of staff, Kathryn Besser, face a Dec. 14 trial on felony charges related to alleged irregularities in how the treasurer’s office handled finances from the Nevada College Savings Program from its inception in 2001 through 2006, Krolicki’s final year in office.

Krolicki and Besser were charged last December after a grand jury found probable cause that Krolicki misappropriated and falsified College Savings Plan accounts and that Besser aided and abetted him. No money was ever found missing from the $3 billion fund. Prosecutors argue Krolicki should have remanded roughly $6 million to the state general fund. Krolicki has said all along the fund was to remain in accounts separate from the general fund.

District Judge Valerie Adair must rule on several issues prior to trial. They include a determination on whether Nevada laws as they relate to the state’s budget and its officers are too vague; whether the charges against Krolicki and Besser create a conflict for the attorney general; and allegations of “irregularities” when the grand jury was convened.

Contact Doug McMurdo at dmcmurdo@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135.