Nevada

Nevada Supreme Court upholds state ban on ghost guns, reversing lower-court decision

Published

2 weeks ago

April 19, 2024

Nevada Supreme Court upholds state ban on ghost guns, reversing lower-court decision

The Nevada Supreme Court upheld a 2021 state ban on ghost guns Thursday, overturning a lower-court decision that declared the law unconstitutional for being vague. Ghost guns are guns without serial numbers and are usually assembled by the user.

Justice Lidia S. Stiglich authored the opinion of the court. Stiglich ruled that the law’s definition of “unfinished frame or receiver” was not unconstitutionally vague. Stiglich noted that the court can consult ordinary dictionaries, specialized dictionaries and industry association publications to understand words with technical or special meanings. After consulting several dictionaries and trade definitions, Stiglich concluded that the term unfinished frame or receiver and the words in its definition are “readily ascertainable through their ordinary usage and understandings common to the heavily regulated subject of firearms.”

Additionally, Stiglich found that the statute does not pose a risk of arbitrary enforcement by the government. Stiglich found that the statute is a general intent statute, meaning that a person has a guilty state of mind to be convicted of a criminal offense if they intend to perform a specific act that led to the crime. Stiglich noted that to convict someone under this law:

[T]he State must show that the defendant willfully sold, offered to sell, transferred, possessed, purchased, transported, or received an unfinished frame or receiver and that the defendant knew that the object at issue had the objective characteristics of being intended to be turned into a firearm.

Because the law requires a general intent, Stiglich found no risk of arbitrary enforcement.

In response to the court’s decision, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford stated:

The ban on ‘ghost guns’ is one of the most impactful pieces of legislation that we have seen come through Carson City. [The] decision … is a win for public safety and creates sensible, practical measures to protect Nevadans from violent crime.

In 2021, the Nevada legislature passed AB 286. The law banned transactions involving incomplete gun frames and receivers and unserialized weapons, with exceptions for antique guns and collectors’ items. That year, a US District Court also upheld the law, ruling that it did not violate the Second Amendment.

This is not the only recent litigation over government regulation of ghost guns. In November 2023, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) lacked authority to adopt a final rule aimed at limiting ghost guns. The Biden administration appealed this decision to the US Supreme Court.

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Nevada

Nevada signs Wisconsin transfer Imbie Jones

Published

16 mins ago

May 2, 2024

Press Room

Nevada signs Wisconsin transfer Imbie Jones

RENO, Nev. (Nevada Athletics) – Nevada Women’s Basketball has signed forward Imbie Jones (Seattle, Wash. / Wisconsin), head coach Amanda Levens announced Thursday.

Jones, a Seattle native, was ranked a three-star recruit by ESPN and among Prospects Nation’s Elite 150 coming out of Garfield High School in 2023. At Garfield, Jones was a two-time state champion (2022, 2023) and three-time All-Metro selection (2020, 2022, 2023), highlighted by a first-team nod as a senior.

Jones spent her 2023-24 season at Wisconsin, appearing in 15 games for the Badgers. Wisconsin went 15-17 on the season, reaching the WNIT quarterfinals.

“Imbie is a great addition for us. We recruited her out of high school and are excited about the length and versatility she will bring to our team. We are excited to welcome Imbie into our Pack,” Levens said.

Jones is the third addition to the Wolf Pack’s 2024-25 roster, joining fellow transfer forward Amelia Raidaveta (Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia / Weber State) and November prep signee Kendra Hicks (Portland, Ore. / Jesuit HS).

Nevada women’s basketball will begin their offseason preparation and host various summer activities for the Northern Nevada community. The team’s annual golf outing fundraiser will take place Friday, June 21 at Wolf Run Golf Club. Nevada will also host three summer camps: Team Camp (June 22-23), Overnight Camp (July 23-25) and Elite Camp (August 2). More information can be found on NevadaWolfPack.com.

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Nevada

$1.8 million for clean energy projects coming to Nevada

Published

7 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Press Room

$1.8 million for clean energy projects coming to Nevada

WASHINGTON D.C. (KOLO) – Nearly $1.8 million for clean energy projects will be coming to the state of Nevada.

The funds come from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and are awarded to the Silver State to provide grants to local governments for clean energy projects.

U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, who voted for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2021, had this to say about the funds:

“As Nevada continues to experience the effects of the climate crisis, it’s critical that we invest in clean energy projects that reduce our emissions and lower energy costs for Nevadans,” said Senator Rosen. “I was proud to secure this funding to increase energy efficiency in our state and create clean energy jobs thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law I helped write and pass. I’ll always fight to deliver federal investments for our state’s booming clean energy economy.”

“Nevada is paving the path to our country’s clean energy future, and this grant will help us grow our clean energy economy,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “I will continue working to support energy efficiency, bring down costs for Nevada families, and combat climate change.”

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Nevada

Man convicted in 2019 kidnapping, death of woman in Nevada

Published

15 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Press Room

Man convicted in 2019 kidnapping, death of woman in Nevada

A Pennsylvania man was convicted in the 2019 kidnapping and death of a woman whom he lured into traveling with him to Southern Nevada and later tied her to a signpost, taped her mouth and nose and watched her die from asphyxiation.

John Matthew Chapman, 44, was found guilty by a jury Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas of one count of kidnapping resulting in death. He is set to be sentenced on Aug. 24, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.

Chapman faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, prosecutors stated in a news release.

Based on court documents and evidence presented during Chapman’s eight-day trial, on Nov. 14, 2019, police in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, conducted a welfare check on the victim at the request of a friend, according to prosecutors.

The friend had not seen the victim for about two months but had observed a man they believed to be her boyfriend, Chapman, entering and leaving the victim’s home, prosecutors said.

While searching the victim’s residence, “officers found identification cards with Chapman’s name and photograph, the victim’s cellular telephone, multiple zip ties, and a roll of duct tape,” prosecutors said in the release.

Detectives arrested Chapman the following day, and during an interview, he admitted to driving the victim from Bethel Park to Las Vegas and misleading her into believing the trip was a vacation and that they might buy a residence in Las Vegas, according to prosecutors.

“Chapman, however, had planned to kill the victim before their departure to Nevada,” prosecutors stated in the release.

Chapman admitted to investigators that he drove the victim to the desert in Lincoln County and under the pretext of a bondage photo shoot, bound the victim’s hands and feet with plastic zip ties and tied her to a signpost.

“Then he applied duct tape to her mouth and nose and watched her die from asphyxiation,” prosecutors stated.

The joint investigation, involving the FBI in Las Vegas, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and Bethel Park police, found that Chapman had returned to Pennsylvania and posed as the victim, including using her Facebook messenger account, living in her residence and using her money after her death, they said.

Contact Jeff Burbank at jburbank@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0382. Follow him @JeffBurbank2 on X.

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