Supervisors to appoint justice of the peace, review fire station

Four people have applied for a temporary appointment for justice of the peace in department 2 of Carson City Justice and Municipal Court, according to applications released by the city.

The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to publicly interview candidates 1:30 p.m. Thursday in the community center, 851 E. William St., and make an appointment that will last until a new justice of the peace elected this year takes office. Supervisors’ regular meeting starts at 8:30 a.m. and will include review of a $15.6 million contract for the new fire station and emergency operations center off Butti Way.

Carson residents Melanie Bruketta, Tyson League, Gene Edwards Munnings and Daniel Spence applied for the appointment. Everyone except Munnings also filed for the seat in the upcoming election. The vacancy arose when the former justice of the peace in department 2, Kristin Luis, was appointed by Gov. Joe Lombardo to First Judicial District Court in December. Luis’ term as justice of the peace was up this year, so the board’s appointment is for the interim.

Melanie Bruketta, a former deputy district attorney and former human resources director for Carson City, graduated from Carson High, attended UNR and Gonzaga School of Law. Bruketta currently runs a private solo law practice.

In her application, Bruketta said her legal career began in the city’s justice court working for the DA’s office. Eventually she moved to the civil division.

“During that time, I represented the city in complex civil cases such (as) excessive use of force, land use and violations of constitutional rights,” she wrote.

Bruketta said she’s argued in front of city, state and federal courts, including the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

“Very few lawyers in Carson City can say they have experience advocating in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals,” she wrote. “I was fortunate to have that experience more than once.”

League went to Chapman University and Whittier Law School and began his legal career at the Carson City District Attorney’s Office in 2014. He is currently supervising deputy district attorney.

League said justice courts can now conduct jury trials for domestic battery offenses. He said if a judge is not well-versed in “evidentiary rules,” they can “inadvertently taint a jury or commit error.”

“I have completed numerous jury trials during my career,” he wrote in his application. “I will always remember the child sex trafficking case I took to jury trial. I was stressed because this was a high-stake case with real implications for the victims, the public and the defendant who was ultimately found guilty.”

League said his experience “allows me to be confident in ruling on objections made during the course of a trial in an expedient, fair, and most importantly legally correct manner.”

Munnings is the owner of the recently closed Evergreen Gene’s garden store off Highway 50. According to this application, he attended Towson State University and Western Nevada College.

In his application, Munnings said he received a 10-year prison sentence for two counts of arson in the Baltimore area in 1980. In 2022, he was found guilty of misdemeanor assault and battery in Carson City Justice Court, according to his application.

“I believe I would make a good justice of the peace because I have experienced being imprisoned for a length of time both in the federal system and state system in Maryland,” he wrote. “In the Carson City Jail, I also experienced what goes on there and the others that were there and learned of their situations. I would have an open mind to understand each person’s situation and try to address their situation in a fair and understanding (manner).”

Munnings said he has no desire to run for the office in the election and, if appointed, would donate his salary to charity.

Spence is a 1993 Carson High graduate. He went to UNR and Barry Law School. He opened his solo law firm in Carson in 2013 and has contracted with the city for conflict counsel.

He was also a computer programmer for Douglas County’s court system, according to his application. Two judges in Douglas County suggested Spence go to law school.

“Having worked the entirety of my professional career in and around the court system, I learned early on the importance of honesty and candor,” Spence wrote.

He said his clients at his private practice get his attention and best efforts.

“Be it civil or criminal matters, in my mind there is an underlying principle to resolving these cases, to balance the needs and desires of the parties and that of the community,” he wrote.

Before the appointment process, supervisors will convene at 8:30 a.m. and review several items for possible action including a $15.6 million contract between Carson and CORE West Inc.

If approved, CORE would become construction manager at risk (CMAR) for the new fire station and emergency operations center/IT offices off Butti Way. Supervisors are also being asked to supplement the project with $500,000 from the city’s ambulance fund.

The contract would make CORE responsible for “construction, utility coordination, scheduling, all procurement of subcontractors and suppliers and ancillary tasks required to complete the project,” according to staff. The total amount includes a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) of $15,161,830 and a contingency of $450,000.

“Construction of a new fire station that includes an emergency operations center (EOC), offices for the IT department and a backup dispatch station was identified by the board, city staff and the public as the number one priority in the city’s FY 2022-2026 Strategic Plan,” reads a staff report. “The project will construct an approximately 17,700 square feet facility to meet those needs and will be located on the south side of Butti Way, just east of the Public Works Administration Building.”

The report says current available project funding is $17.9 million from a mix of bonds, federal funding including $4.3 million in ARPA funds, capital improvement funding and a past $500,000 allocation from the ambulance fund.

“Although staff has diligently negotiated the contract and GMP with CORE, the uncharacteristically high inflation experienced in recent years has made project costs difficult to predict,” reads the report. “The project is now estimated to cost $18.4 million, resulting in an estimated shortfall of $500,000. Staff is requesting an additional $500,000 allocation from the city’s Ambulance Fund to cover this funding shortfall.”

If the contract moves forward, CORE expects “substantial completion” of the new station by autumn 2025, according to the report.