Nevada
Lawsuit: Burning Man nurse unlawfully detained while trying to help patient
A nurse volunteering her time at the 2022 Burning Man festival in northern Nevada is alleging in a lawsuit that she was unlawfully detained while trying to help a festival attendee.
When Hannah Hoekstra, a registered nurse, was paged to help a woman who was requesting help after what the lawsuit described as “a discomforting encounter” with a male festival-goer in his private tent, Hoekstra ultimately found herself placed in handcuffs by deputies from the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office, according to the lawsuit, which was filed on Aug. 31.
“There’s just no excuse for something like this to happen, and while it would be fortunate to believe that this is a rarity, it is in fact all too common,” said Nathan Lawrence, Hoekstra’s attorney.
Hoekstra, a forensic nurse who had previously collaborated with the sheriff’s office, was a seasoned volunteer at the festival, according to the lawsuit. As a volunteer nurse, she wore a yellow shirt with the words “EMERGENCY SERVICES” on it.
Deputy told to handcuff her, lawsuit says
On Aug. 31, 2022, Hoekstra was speaking privately with a woman who had asked for help when a plain-clothed deputy from the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office named Donna Robinson requested to come into the tent where the pair were speaking, the lawsuit said.
When the woman indicated to Hoekstra that she didn’t wish to speak with Deputy Robinson, Hoekstra left the tent to explain the situation to Robinson.
The lawsuit said that Robinson told Hoekstra that if the patient did not want to speak with law enforcement, she would have to “tell me that herself on my [bodyworn] camera.”
Robinson then told Hoekstra that if she and the patient didn’t tell her what was “going on right now,” Hoekstra would be “arrested for obstruction of my investigation,” according to the lawsuit.
When Hoekstra requested to speak with her own supervisor, Robinson instructed another deputy, only named as Deputy Boyer in the lawsuit, to detain and handcuff her.
As Hoekstra was being “dragged away,” the patient she had been helping reportedly called out “What are you doing? That woman was helping me!”
A Bureau of Land Management officer identified in the lawsuit only as Ranger P. Zoltovetz reportedly assisted in detaining Hoekstra. Bystanders filming the event were allegedly told by officers, according to the lawsuit, that the sheriff’s office would need the video for Hoekstra’s “prosecution.”
After nearly 40 minutes, Hoekstra was eventually released without any criminal charges or citations, the lawsuit said.
Constitutional rights ‘disregarded’
“Violation of a constitutional right is not a small thing,” Lawrence said, “particularly when, as a society, we are compelled to put our trust into law enforcement for our protection and for protection of our civil rights.”
According to Lawrence and the lawsuit, since the incident, Hoekstra has been diagnosed and treated for PTSD.
While still working as a nurse, Hoekstra no longer works in forensic nursing because of the “mental anguish and emotional distress” from the alleged unlawful detention.
Changing the scope of her work to exclude forensic nursing “detrimentally affected her career trajectory,” the lawsuit said.
Lawrence said that rather than supporting a fellow first responder, officers from the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Land Management “completely disregarded” Hoekstra’s constitutional rights in an “entirely unnecessary event.”
There was no probable cause or reasonable suspicion existing that would have allowed officers to detain Hoekstra, Lawrence said. Neither the sheriff’s office nor BLM responded to requests for comment.
“At least anecdotally, there is evidence of this type of behavior increasing somewhat, particularly in the state of Nevada, across a variety of law enforcement agencies,” Lawrence said.
In Southern Nevada, Metropolitan Police Department Sgt. Kevin Menon was arrested Aug. 30 on suspicion of a “pattern of unlawful detentions,” according to an arrest report.
Lawrence said that unlawful detention not only harms the individual victim, but “it’s a harm to society, and that’s a big part of what we’re trying to resolve.”
Contact Estelle Atkinson at eatkinson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @estellelilym on X and @estelleatkinsonreports on Instagram.
Nevada
Oregon lands commitment from Nevada punter
Oregon has found its next Australian punter.
Bailey Ettridge, who averaged 44.66 yards on 47 punts at Nevada this season, committed to transfer to the Ducks on Sunday. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.
From Lara, Australia, Ettridge had 15 punts over 50 yards and 18 inside opponents’ 20-yard lines this season. He also had two carries for 26 yards, both of which converted fourth downs.
Ettridge replaces James Ferguson-Reynolds, who is averaging 41.64 yards on 33 punts for UO this season. Ferguson-Reynolds and Ross James are both out of eligibility after the season.
Ettridge is the first scholarship transfer to Oregon this offseason and his addition gives the Ducks 81 projected scholarship players in 2026. He is the lone punter presently on the roster.
No. 1 Indiana (14-0) vs. No. 5 Oregon (13-1)
- When: Friday, January 9
- Time: 4:30 p.m. PT
- Where: Mercedes Benz Stadium, Atlanta
- TV: ESPN and ABC
- Stream: You can watch this game on DIRECTV (free trial) or with Sling (a Sling day pass to watch this game and more is just $4.99). Streaming broadcasts for this game will be available on these streaming services locally in Oregon and Washington, but may not be available outside of the Pacific Northwest, depending on your location.
Nevada
‘Winnemucca Day’ helps fuel Backus, Wolf Pack to 58-40 win over Utah State
RENO, Nev. (Nevada Athletics) – Nevada Women’s Basketball returned to Lawlor for the first game of 2026, hosting Utah State.
The Pack picked up its first conference win of the season with the 58-40 victory over the Aggies.
Freshmen showed out for the Pack (5-9, 1-3 MW) with Skylar Durley nearly recording a double-double, dropping 12 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Britain Backus had five points to go along with two rebounds and a season high four steals.
Junior Izzy Sullivan also had an impactful game with 17 points, going 6-for-11 from the paint and grabbing five boards. She also knocked down Nevada’s only two makes from beyond the arc, putting her within one for 100 career threes.
The Pack opened up scoring the first four points, setting the tone for the game. It was a close battle through the first 10 as Utah State (6-7, 2-2 MW) closed the gap to one.
However, Nevada never let them in front for the entire 40 minutes.
Nevada turned up the pressure in the second quarter, holding Utah State to a shooting drought for over four minutes. Meanwhile, a 5-0 scoring run pushed the Pack to a 10-point lead.
For the entire first 20, Nevada held Utah State to just 26.7 percent from the floor and only nine percent from the arc, going only 1-for-11.
For the Pack offense, it shot 48 percent from the paint. Nevada fell into a slump coming out of the break, only scoring eight points.
It was the only quarter where the Pack was outscored.
The fourth quarter saw the Pack get back into rhythm with a 6-0 run and forcing the Aggies into another long scoring drought of just under four and a half minutes.
Durley had a layup and jumper to help with securing the win.
Nevada will remain at home to face Wyoming on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Copyright 2026 KOLO. All rights reserved.
Nevada
EDITORIAL: Nevada’s House Democrats oppose permitting reform
Politicians of both parties have promised to fix the nation’s broken permitting system. But those promises have not been kept, and the status quo prevails: longer timelines, higher costs and a regulatory maze that makes it nearly impossible to build major projects on schedule.
Last week, the House finally cut through the fog by passing the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act. As Jeff Luse reported for Reason, the legislation is the clearest chance in years to overhaul a system that has spun out of control.
Notably, virtually every House Democrat — including Reps. Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford from Nevada — opted for the current regulatory morass.
The proposal addressed problems with the National Environmental Policy Act, which passed in the 1970s to promote transparency, but has grown into an anchor that drags down public and private investment. Mr. Luse notes that even after Congress streamlined the act in 2021, the average environmental impact statement takes 2.4 years to complete. That number speaks for itself and does not reflect the many reviews that stretch far beyond that already unreasonable timeline.
The SPEED Act tackles these failures head on. It would codify recent Supreme Court guidance, expand the projects that do not require exhaustive review and set real expectations for federal agencies that too often slow-walk approvals. Most important, it puts long-overdue limits on litigation. Mr. Luse highlights the absurdity of the current six-year window for filing a lawsuit under the Environmental Policy Act. Between 2013 and 2022, these lawsuits delayed projects an average of 4.2 years.
While opponents insist the bill would silence communities, Mr. Luse notes that NEPA already includes multiple public hearings and comment periods. Also, the vast majority of lawsuits are not filed by members of the people who live near the projects. According to the Breakthrough Institute, 72 percent of NEPA lawsuits over the past decade came from national nonprofits. Only 16 percent were filed by local communities. The SPEED Act does not shut out the public. It reins in well-funded groups that can afford to stall projects indefinitely.
Some Democrats claim the bill panders to fossil fuel companies, while some Republicans fear it will accelerate renewable projects. As Mr. Luse explains, NEPA bottlenecks have held back wind, solar and transmission lines as often as they have slowed oil and gas. That is why the original SPEED Act won support from green energy groups and traditional energy producers.
Permitting reform is overdue, and lawmakers claim to understand that endless red tape hurts economic growth and environmental progress alike. The SPEED Act is the strongest permitting reform proposal in years. The Senate should approve it.
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