Brooks’ ouster from Assembly cost Nevada taxpayers $94,000
CARSON CITY — It cost Nevada taxpayers $94,508.12 for the legal and investigative work in the review that led to the ouster of former Assemblyman Steven Brooks from his District 17 seat, documents show.
The independent counsel hired by the Assembly to investigate whether the troubled lawmaker should be removed from office cost $66,715, more than the initial estimate of $45,000, according to the invoices received by the Legislative Counsel Bureau.
Las Vegas attorney Mark Ferrario was hired to perform the work for the Assembly, which on March 28 voted to remove the troubled lawmaker from office in an unprecedented vote.
Investigative services provided by The Advantage Group, a Reno-based investigative and consulting firm, added another $27,793.12 to the total. The firm charged $75 an hour plus costs for its services in the Brooks review. The company is run by Duane Isenberg, who is retired from the Reno Police Department.
Brooks’ troubles began with a Jan. 19 arrest in Las Vegas on allegations that he threatened Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick over his committee assignments. A number of other incidents followed, leading a Select Assembly Committee to recommend his removal from office.
The Clark County Commission then appointed Tyrone Thompson to take over Brooks’ North Las Vegas seat for the rest of the session.
The day after his ouster, Brooks was arrested in California following a chase on Interstate 15 by the Barstow Police Department on charges of evading and resisting arrest, throwing objects from his vehicle and harming a police dog.
Contact Capital Bureau reporter Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900.
