LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — If you’ve driven on the streets of Las Vegas, you’ve seen people running red lights.
Whether it’s impairment, impatience or insolence, failing to stop has had real consequences, and sometimes deadly ones.
That’s one of the reasons a viewer named Nicole wrote to us to ask why Nevada doesn’t use red-light cameras, which snap a picture of scofflaws and send them a ticket in the mail.
It’s a common question, one that’s been asked many times, by locals and lawmakers alike.
KTNV
Here’s the story:
Back in 1999, automated traffic cameras were banned in Nevada. Legislative committee minutes from that year show then-state Sen. Mark James, R-Clark County, warning about Big Brother.
“He urged the [Senate Transportation] committee to be careful to not set us on a path of compromising the civil liberties of our citizens,” the minutes read. “Senator James then stressed the need to recognize possible consequences to our actions if they, as legislators, were to permit law enforcement to infringe on our rights.”
James’s arguments carried the day, and the law he backed has remained undisturbed for a quarter century.
But not for lack of trying.
Lawmakers have considered bills to create exceptions or repeal the ban on automated traffic cameras no fewer than 11 times in the years since it was put in place.
Each time, the bill has failed to pass both houses of the Legislature, even when circumscribed to apply only to school zones, construction zones or railroad crossings. Restrictions, including requiring an officer to review each photo before a ticket is sent — and limiting the fine to between $50 and $100 — have failed to sway lawmakers in libertarian Nevada.
Until this year, that is.
In the 2025 Legislature, three bills were introduced. One would have allowed the cameras in construction zones, where workers face dangerous conditions, especially on freeways. Another would have allowed cameras in areas where traditional law enforcement methods have failed.
Both those bills were rejected, although the construction-zone bill passed the Assembly and made it to the Senate floor before dying.
Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill, who strongly supported the red-light camera bill in testimony before lawmakers, admitted he fell short in his October speech announcing his bid for re-election.
“And listen, I will fully admit to you that I went up to the Legislature this last session and testified in front of them on red-light cameras, and I literally got laughed out of the building,” McMahill said. “I don’t deny that. But what I will also tell you is that I’ll be back again next time. I’m going to come back with a better plan. And I’m going to continue to ask those other elected officials to have some level of responsibility for the ways people are dying in our community.”
But one bill carving out an exception to the ban did pass the Legislature: Assembly Bill 527 will allow cameras to be mounted on school buses, to catch people who speed by when red lights are flashing.
The Clark County School District said Monday that it is in the process of hiring a vendor to install the cameras, and expects to present a proposal to the board of trustees in January.
So while red light cameras won’t be used on Las Vegas streets, on freeways, in school zones or at railroad crossings, they will be used on buses starting next year, the first exception to the camera ban in decades.
Mojave (Nev.) head football coach Wes Pacheco announced on Sunday morning that he’s stepping down from his position, according to a social media post.
Pacheco announced his resignation after six seasons at the helm of the Rattlers, putting together a 29-22 overall record from 2020-2025.
“I have officially stepped down as Head Coach of the Mojave Football Program,” Pacheco said in his social media post. “Thank you to Principal Cole for giving me the opoortunity make an impact on the lives of Mojave Student-Athletes. I am grateful and blessed to have labored through a 6-year journey of successes, failures, life lessons, character building and growth with the student-athletes myself and my coaching staff have served. I will forever love my Mojave Family, the Mojave Community and believe in the notion that SUCCESS can be attained by showcasing character, treating everyone with respect, and always have the courage to dream big and trust that “ATTACKING THE HARD WORK” & “HIGH MOTORING EVERYTHING” can yield SUCCESS that you want to achieve in life!”
During Pacheco’s half dozen seasons leading Mojave, his best record came in the 2024 season when the Rattlers finished with a 12-1 record. Located out of North Las Vegas, Mojave had to compete against the likes of national high school football powerhouse Bishop Gorman during the regular season.
Mojave ended the last season with a 4-6 record and as the state’s No. 23rd ranked team, according to the final 2025 Nevada High School Football Massey Rankings.
Mojave High School, located in North Las Vegas, NV, is a dynamic public high school that fosters academic excellence, personal growth, and community involvement. Home of the Rattlers, MHS offers a wide range of academic programs, athletics, and extracurricular activities. With a strong commitment to student success, Mojave emphasizes leadership, college and career readiness, and a supportive school culture that prepares students for life beyond graduation.
For Nevada high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around the nation, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the Silver State, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the high school football excitement across Nevada.
A recent Review-Journal letter to the editor mischaracterized Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto’s Southern Nevada Economic Development and Conservation Act, also known as the Clark County Lands bill. As the former executive director of the Nevada Conservation League, I wholeheartedly support this legislation, so I wanted to set the record straight.
Sen. Cortez Masto has been working on this bill for years in partnership with state and local governments, conservation groups like the NCL and local area tribes. It’s true that the Clark County lands bill would open 25,000 acres to help Las Vegas grow responsibly, while setting aside 2 million acres for conservation. It would also help create more affordable housing throughout the valley while ensuring our treasured public spaces can be preserved for generations to come.
What is not correct is that the money from these land sales would go to the federal government’s coffers. In fact, the opposite is true.
The 1998 Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act is a landmark bill that identified specific public land for future sale and created a special account ensuring all land sale revenues would come back to Nevada. In accordance with that law 5 percent of revenue from land transfers goes to the state of Nevada for general education purposes, 10 percent goes to the Southern Nevada Water Authority for needed water infrastructure and 85 percent supports conservation and environmental mitigation projects in Southern Nevada. This legislation has provided billions to Clark County and will continue to benefit generations of Southern Nevadans. Sen. Cortez Masto’s lands bill builds upon the act’s success.
So here’s the good news: All of the money generated from land made available for sale under Sen. Cortez Masto’s bill would be sent to the special account created by the 1998 law. Rather than going to an unaccountable federal government, the proceeds would continue to help kids in Vegas get a better education, bolster outdoor recreation and modernize Southern Nevada’s infrastructure.
I know how important it is that money generated from the sale of public land in Nevada stay in the hands of Nevadans, and so does the senator. That’s why she opposed a Republican effort last year to sell off 200,000 acres of land in Clark County and other areas of the country that would have sent those dollars directly to Washington.
Public land management in Nevada should benefit Nevadans. We should protect sacred cultural sites and beloved recreation spaces, responsibly transfer land for affordable housing when needed and ensure our state has the resources it needs to grow sustainably. I will continue working with Sen. Cortez Masto to advocate for legislation, such as the Clark County lands bill, that puts the needs of Nevadans first.
Paul Selberg writes from Las Vegas.
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Las Vegas High’s baseball team claimed a 3-2 home win over Coronado on Friday.
Las Vegas (9-13-1) next hosts Rancho at 10 a.m. Saturday. Coronado (13-14) hosts Chaparral at 3:30 p.m. Monday.
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
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