Sheriff’s race turns: Moody endorses Lombardo

The Clark County sheriff hopeful who billed himself as a police department “outsider” has decided to endorse the “insider” candidate for the top law enforcement job in Las Vegas.

Former Metro Assistant Sheriff Ted Moody on Wednesday announced his support for former colleague Assistant Sheriff Joe Lombardo, who is facing retired captain Larry Burns in November’s general election. Moody finished third in the June primary.

Moody’s endorsement is surprising, considering the way he ran his campaign. He abruptly retired in July 2013 after questioned Sheriff Doug Gillespie’s handling of the department’s internal process for reviewing police shootings, and he’s been publicly critical of the agency’s administration since.

In an interview with the Review-Journal shortly after his retirement, Moody said Gillespie undermined the integrity of the Use of Force Review Board when he disregarded its decision to fire officer Jacquar Roston, who shot an unarmed man in a car after mistaking the shine from the man’s hat for a gun.

The board, which consists of officers and civilians, had been maligned for years as a rubber-stamp process that always ruled in favor of an officer.

Moody had been tasked with revamping the board as part of the department’s ongoing deadly force reforms in the last four years. When Gillespie decided to save Roston’s job, Moody quit in protest, saying he couldn’t work for an administration that valued politics over principle.

But if Lombardo embodies anything, it’s Metro’s current administration.

Lombardo was Gillespie’s choice to replace Moody as chairman of the board. And just two months later, Gillespie announced he wouldn’t seek re-election, eventually pitting Moody and Lombardo against each other in their bid for his job.

With Gillespie and former Sheriff Bill Young supporting him, Lombardo benefited from a significant fundraising advantage via support from the casino industry, which has historically given money to the outgoing sheriff’s chosen candidate. Because of their support, Lombardo is considered the heavy favorite over Burns.

Moody said in February during a debate on Jon Ralston’s show “Ralston Reports” that Lombardo was owned “lock, stock and barrel” by special interests in Las Vegas, a charge Lombardo vehemently denied.

He was quiet after losing in the primary, not offering his immediate support to either candidate.

But his opinion on Lombardo has apparently softened. Moody cited Lombardo’s work as chairman of the Use of Force Review Board as a primary reason he earned his endorsement.

“Joe has convinced me that he will take concrete steps to meet this challenge… working to establish Metro’s internal use of force review board as a model process that both the community and the men and women can trust and support,” Moody said a statement Wednesday.

Moody also intends to remain part of the process if Lombardo is elected.

“Based on our discussions I intend to work very closely with him to help make this happen,” he wrote.

Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@reviewjournal.com. Follow @blasky on Twitter.