450 PENDING MURDER TRIALS OVERWHELMING VEGAS COURTS

July 18, 2022

Rob Lauer Political Reporter

Right now may be the best time ever to commit a murder. Low bail, 3 to 4 years before you see the inside of a court room and the plea deals are flying off the shelf.

A person arrested and charged with murder today in Clark County can expect to wait three to four years for a trial date. Currently there are over 450 people charged with murder awaiting trial in Clark County. The system has completely collapsed according to defense attorneys 360 have spoken with. Even though our liberal judges give many folks charged with murder bail most cannot afford the bail and are stuck in jail awaiting trial. And about a third of folks charged with murder do bail out and are now back out on the streets.

The U.S. Constitution requires a person charged with a felony be tried within 30 days if they request a speedy trial. But the courts have given themselves an exemption to the Constitution when the court rooms are full and there are no judges available. So they may say you can go to trial in 30 days, but then kick the case out six months claiming scheduling conflicts.

The long wait for trial benefits the defense typically because witnesses may die or move away. After a few years memories fade. Time is on the bad guys’ side. Justice delayed is justice denied for victims all too often.

Yes, the Clark County Courts were reduced to blue jean (zoom) hearings due to CV19 in 2020 and into 2021 causing part of the backlog. But the mask mandate, the merry go round bail system here and in California bring new criminals to Vegas all helped to skyrocketed Clark County’s murder rate. According to the Las Vegas Metro Police Strip Command Center, in 2021, murders were up 1,000% percent. 89% of 2021 murder cases in Metro’s jurisdiction have been solved. LVMPD can only catch the bad guys. If the courts let them go on bail they end up back on the streets to commit more crimes.

Republican Candidate for Governor, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo:

“My Department has arrested folks on murder charges; they got out on bail and committed more murders.”

Crime is such a huge issue in Nevada, the top of the Republican ticket has two cops. Both the Republican Candidate for Governor, Sheriff Lombardo and (R) Candidate for LT. Governor Stavros Anthony is a retired LVMPD police captain.

In the 90’s, California passed a three strikes law for criminals that took all discretion away from judges and liberal prosecutors. Crime dropped 80%. Three strikes showed the great majority of crimes were committed by a small group of criminals.

Nevada has a habitual criminal law but it’s rarely enforced.

Many murders are committed in Nevada by repeat offenders like 35-year-old Tristan Tidwell, who was taken into custody on September 21, 2021, without incident, for three counts of open murder with a deadly weapon, one count of owning a gun as a prohibited person and one count of carrying a concealed weapon without a permit. Tidwell has been booked into the North Las Vegas Corrections Center.

Tristen Tidwell booking photo (NLVPD)

Tidwell’s long and violent crime spree goes back to at least 2005 when he pled guilty and was sentenced to Boot Camp for eight burglaries and grand larceny. A year later, in 2006,  he was arrested and pled guilty to another burglary and sentenced to probation.

In 2007 he got caught attempting another burglary. He was sentenced to 12 months with time served.

Later that year, in July 2007, he was charged with two home invasion robberies and sentenced to 12 months.

While in prison, he committed another felony, “battery on a prisoner.”

In 2018, Tidwell had been arrested for attempted robbery and burglary at a local bank in downtown Las Vegas.

Tidwell had 9 felonies when he was charged with three murders in September 2021 while out on bail for three charges of burglary and larceny.

   Tristan Tidwell rap sheet (Photo: NLVPD)