Video of fight between 2 Las Vegas councilwomen likely deleted

City Hall surveillance videos showing a Jan. 11 carnal altercation betwixt Las Vegas City Councilwomen Michele Fiore and Victoria Seaman seemingly were deleted, contempt efforts by the Review-Journal to get the footage done nationalist records requests.

Dating backmost to February, metropolis officials were dilatory to supply responses for requested video footage, and circumstantial queries person generated vague replies and nary confirmation astir the spot and clip of the altercation. Officials besides person stated nary emails betwixt metropolis officials beryllium related to the incident.

At 1 point, metropolis attorneys said the paper would person to wage the metropolis $63,680 and hold astatine slightest 150 concern days for 1 staffer to reappraisal each 150 surveillance cameras astatine City Hall. Officials besides did not pass the Review-Journal astir their video deletion argumentation — retaining surveillance video for 60 days — until the footage apt had been deleted.

Richard Karpel, enforcement manager of the Nevada Press Association, expressed interest astir the mode the metropolis handled the Review-Journal’s video requests.

“Nevada’s nationalist records instrumentality requires authorities officials to assistance requesters find what they’re looking for,” Karpel said. “Moreover, section governments tin beryllium fined for willful violations of the law. For those reasons, the metropolis of Las Vegas should beryllium very, precise tense astir what happened here.”

Multiple requests were made arsenic portion of ongoing reporting into an FBI probe of Fiore’s run finances and an escalating high-profile feud involving threats, bullying accusations and ineligible actions betwixt the 2 councilwomen, who were erstwhile allies.

City officials apt knew the nonstop determination of the carnal confrontation. In aboriginal February, a root told the Review-Journal the incidental took spot connected the seventh floor. Seven months later, it was discovered the incidental started connected the 2nd floor, but by that time, surveillance footage was seemingly deleted, according to metropolis attorneys.

Last week, metropolis officials said they would not remark immoderate further connected the taxable and refused to specifically corroborate whether immoderate oregon each video of the altercation was deleted.

Fiore has not returned repeated requests for comment, and a spokesperson for Seaman said she did not privation to speech astir the disappearance of video due to the fact that of “pending litigation.”

The confrontation

The altercation, which has been the taxable of overmuch gossip astatine City Hall, took spot Jan. 11 pursuing an Audit Oversight Committee meeting, according to Seaman’s lawyers.

Seaman claims Fiore broke her digit and past grabbed her hairsbreadth and threw her to the ground successful a private, second-floor hallway down the City Council chambers. The women had exchanged heated words aft Seaman told Fiore she felt Fiore had disrespected her astatine the meeting, a root adjacent to Seaman said.

A video of the gathering shows that Seaman, arsenic the chairwoman, was having immoderate procedural problems moving the gathering erstwhile Fiore interrupted and asked the clerk: “Does her publication instruct her connected what to say? Maybe we tin hole that.”

Seaman responded, “It’s OK,” and took backmost power of the meeting.

Surveillance cameras are installed successful the second-floor hallway, which is restricted to the public. There are besides cameras wrong and extracurricular an elevator starring to the seventh-floor offices of the assembly members, a City Hall root said.

Fiore and Seaman took their statement to the seventh floor, wherever Fiore slammed the bureau doorway of Mayor Carolyn Goodman connected Seaman successful beforehand of assembly staffers, according to an informed root and Seaman’s lawyers.

In a Sept. 8 effect to a Review-Journal petition for video, City Attorney Bryan Scott wrote: “It is my knowing that the city’s video surveillance strategy recordings are deleted automatically by the surveillance strategy aft 60 calendar days.”

Scott said the metropolis had “no records responsive” to the newspaper’s request.

“Somebody’s trying to conceal thing present that intelligibly is of nationalist interest,” said longtime defence lawyer Todd Leventhal, a erstwhile prosecutor. “City marshals were obligated to spell down and prehend that video for immoderate aboriginal civilian oregon transgression proceedings.”

Former national authoritative Kathleen Bliss, present a defence lawyer, said she was disturbed by the series of events related to video recordings.

“There hasn’t been clarity here,” she said. “That’s thing they request to instrumentality a look astatine due to the fact that these are nationalist officials. I deliberation the nationalist needs to cognize what happened.”

Scott past period did not respond to further questions, including the anticipation that the metropolis allowed video of the combat betwixt the 2 high-profile elected officials to beryllium routinely deleted. Last week, helium did not instrumentality a call, and metropolis spokesperson Jace Radke said the metropolis had nary further comment.

Public records

The Review-Journal primitively requested video Feb. 9.

On Feb. 24, the metropolis provided 1 video extracurricular the nationalist elevators connected the seventh floor, but determination was nary footage of a fight. The video shows Fiore and Seaman walking retired of the elevator successful the greeting not looking astatine 1 different oregon talking to each other.

The Review-Journal broadened the petition Feb. 25 to see video of each City Hall information cameras showing the conflict betwixt the 2 councilwomen.

A lawman metropolis lawyer responded March 4 that it would instrumentality astatine slightest 2,000 hours for 1 staffer to reappraisal the cameras for combat footage and outgo the Review-Journal $63,680. The lawman did not archer the paper that immoderate video of the combat would beryllium automatically deleted wrong days, by March 12.

Faced with the five-figure measure and the lengthy reappraisal time, a newsman connected March 8 informed the metropolis successful penning that “at this point, we are not going to proceed further connected this request.”

In July, the rift betwixt Fiore and Seaman intensified aft the Review-Journal reported that the FBI was investigating Fiore’s run and governmental enactment committee finances. Seaman confirmed successful the communicative that FBI agents had questioned her astir Fiore at City Hall.

Then past month, Seaman’s lawyers sent a missive to Fiore demanding she halt harassing and bullying her oregon look a lawsuit.

The lawyers provided details for the archetypal clip of the Jan. 11 scuffle, alleging it was much superior than what reporters had heard.

Seaman did not record a transgression ailment aft the altercation, a root said. The metropolis spokesperson would not accidental whether metropolis marshals investigated.

Threat to Seaman

Those adjacent to Seaman said she has been connected precocious alert due to the fact that of an anonymous decease menace she received successful August.

Without naming Seaman, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said successful a connection it was conducting a “preliminary investigation” into an alleged menace against a Las Vegas councilwoman. The section had nary further comment.

“When I received the decease threat, it profoundly and emotionally affected maine and my family, to accidental the least,” Seaman precocious said successful a connection to the Review-Journal. “I instantly turned it implicit to the due authorities.”

An informed root said Seaman is present getting extortion from metropolis marshals astatine nationalist events, but the metropolis spokesperson would not corroborate that, citing a signifier not to remark connected information measures.

The menace was made successful a handwritten missive Seaman received Aug. 5.

The missive states:

“You are doing a precise atrocious occupation and you request to extremity your beingness and I americium much than consenting assistance [sic] you bash that. Heres [sic] thing for you to deliberation about. Bang your [sic] dead. Whatever you do, don’t telephone the constabulary oregon you tin buss your loved ones goodbye.”

The envelope containing the missive bears the past sanction and recognition fig of a pistillate inmate astatine the Florence McClure Women’s Correctional Center, and the code of the authorities prison.

But authorities bash not judge the inmate is liable for the threat, the informed root said.

Seaman besides has been the taxable of a mysterious website, concouncilwoman.com, that has been captious of her. The website calls Seaman a “liar” and says she has a past of filing “con-artist lawsuits.” The individuality of the radical down the domain is anonymous, online records show.

Seaman has antecedently called the website an illustration of the kinds of falsehoods being dispersed astir her.

On Wednesday, lawyers for Seaman filed a suit successful Clark County District Court against unnamed “John Doe” defendants successful an effort to place those down the website.

Seaman alleges the website has made mendacious and defamatory allegations astir her, and she is seeking wide and punitive damages.

Contact Jeff German astatine jgerman@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-380-4564. Follow @JGermanRJ connected Twitter. German is simply a subordinate of the Review-Journal’s investigative team, focusing connected reporting that holds leaders and agencies accountable and exposes wrongdoing.