Bottom 10: Strange stories from an odd city

Happy anniversary, Las Vegas.

This marks the 25th annual edition of my Bottom 10 stories of the year. I think you’ll agree that we’re not getting older, we’re getting weirder.

Last year, the state’s practice of sending the indigent mentally ill packing via “Greyhound therapy” edged out Metro’s silly arrest of sidewalk chalk protesters for most embarrassing tale. This year’s list will tempt you to buy a one-way bus ticket out of town.

But on your way, don’t forget to cheer for the home team.

No. 10: HAUCK’S EXIT: After one year out of the Bottom 10, Bobby Hauck’s Fumblin’ Rebels football team blasted its way back into the rankings. Word is suffering Rebels fans actually receive sympathy cards from Cubs fans.

Now top high school coach Tony Sanchez is taking over the team, and Hauck, who signed a contract extension after a single winning season, returns to working on his golf game.

No. 9: SWINGIN’ SAM: Few stars in casino industry history have tarnished as fast as that of SLS impresario Sam Nazarian. I suspect he’s actually a character from “A Night at the Roxbury.”

Although recently granted a limited gaming license despite misleading officials about past drug use, Nazarian has an even bigger hurdle ahead: making the former Sahara successful.

No. 8: SUCKER STADIUM: Promoters of a downtown soccer stadium managed to prevail in winning city approval for a $200 million project.

In the political equivalent of a goalie allowing the ball to roll between his legs, city officials approve spending $56.5 million in upfront costs for the development. That doesn’t include the value of the land and the millions needed to pay the interest on a bond.

Bet you didn’t know you were such a big fan of soccer.

No. 7: DEMOCRATS’ DEBACLE: What if they gave an election and nobody came? Turns out Nevada Democrats, who in recent years have bragged often about their vaunted “machine,” did just that in 2014. The lackluster turnout not only led to a Republican landslide but also to the election of a group of right-wing improvisational comedians to the Assembly.

No. 6: RAUCOUS CAUCUS: Move over, Second City. This troupe of crazy Assembly maniacs is already creating more unintended laughs than an all-star lineup from The Improv. The newspaper writing of Ira Hansen alone was enough to bring tears to our eyes.

No. 5: ACE BONAVENTURA: Just when it was getting eerily quiet around John Bonaventura’s Las Vegas Township Constable’s office, he secretly recorded contemplating depleting his department of up to $4 million. Now the department is being dissolved.

Who does Bonaventura think he is, a City Council member?

No. 4: HOUSE OF HORRORS: No, not North Las Vegas government — the defunct Harmon Hotel. The gateway to CityCenter got off the ground but never held a single occupant thanks to a construction defect. MGM Resorts International and most of the contractors settled prior to trial, which no doubt reduced what promised to be their mutual mortification.

No. 3: UBER STALLS: Ride-sharing company Uber runs into a traffic jam in a Washoe County courtroom, where a judge determines its freelance-style of operation poses a safety risk. The criticism comes at a time that longtime limousine company owner Charles Horky is preparing to plead guilty in a multimillion-dollar racketeering case involving drugs, prostitution and credit card fraud.

No. 2: SOILED ROBES: Family Court Judge Steve Jones finally found himself in a higher court this year. Alas, he wasn’t there as a jurist but as a defendant. Jones avoids trial but not prison time for helping a relative run an investment scheme from his chambers.

No. 1: THE PLAGIARIST: Stop me if you’ve read this somewhere before.

UNLV English professor Mustapha Marrouchi is finally fired after he’s exposed in the Chronicle of Higher Education for stealing from the creative work of at least 18 writers.

Rumor is he left a note in his office that began, “It is a far, far better thing I do than I have ever done …”

At the risk of being accused of stealing someone else’s material, I’m betting history will repeat itself in 2015.

John L. Smith’s column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Email him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call 702-383-0295. Follow him on Twitter @jlnevadasmith.