Your Daily Guide

A new audit finds several major issues in the management of the Clark County Public Administrator's Office, which handles the estates of residents who die without leaving behind a will or next of kin. Many of the problems allegedly stem from the tenure of former administrator Robert Telles. In 2022, Telles was convicted of murdering Las Vegas Review-Journal journalist Jeff German after German exposed his mismanagement and misconduct.

Some key findings in the new investigation include:

• A massive backlog: Cases become more difficult and expensive to close the longer they drag out, yet 59% of the office’s 1,900 cases have been open for more than a year; 34 cases have been open for more than a decade.
• Unmanaged remains: The office holds the cremated remains of 105 people. More than half of them have been there at least three years, and the county crypt is full.
• Poor inventory controls: More than 147 vehicles and 4,500 personal items, including firearms and jewelry, are in the administrator’s possession. Hundreds of checks have also sat unprocessed beyond the date a bank requires to cash them.
• Security lacking: The audit details several security failures and opportunities for theft without detection.

Voters will have an opportunity to elect the next public administrator in the coming election. Republican Mike Murphy, who served as interim administrator after Telles and was the county coroner for several years, is running against Democrat Stephanie Itkin-Goodman. While Murphy claims he lacked the authority to implement sufficient reforms while overseeing the office, Itkin-Goodman claims the office needs wholly independent, new leadership to bring about the radical reforms needed. [Nevada Independent]

✈️ Not Funny, Bruh

The man whose Saturday night text caused a United flight to return to Las Vegas 15 minutes after takeoff told investigators he was just drunk. A flight attendant saw the text sent by Dante Milne, 25, which read, “I’m gonna hijack this bitch and crash ur row only.” He fell asleep right after sending it. He later explained that he’d had a beer and some shots in an airport bar. He faces one count of making threats or conveying false information concerning an act of terrorism. [NY Post]

💸 Servers Say Tip Tax Break Not Mathing

Two years in, many Las Vegas workers say Trump’s “no tax on tips” promise isn’t adding up. Among their criticisms:

• Social Security, Medicare, and other payroll taxes still apply.
• Automatic gratuities and mandatory service charges, which can make up a large portion or all of some servers’ income, are excluded. (They’re considered wages, not tips.)
• The deduction is capped at $25,000 and spouses filing jointly don’t get to double that number.
• The whole thing is set to expire after 2028.

The Culinary Union, which represents about 60,000 hospitality workers in Southern Nevada, is pushing to expand the federal policy. [KSNV]

🚔 North LV to Pay $25K Over False Arrest

A man who sued the City of North Las Vegas after being arrested based on a fake warrant has agreed to settle for $25,000. Army veteran Kenny Smith was arrested in March based on a warrant that was apparently created for training purposes. His information had been in the system due to a separate pending criminal case for domestic battery. [KTNV]

♠️ Big Winner Shares Secrets

Professional gambler Gina Fiore, who beat casinos in Vegas and around the world out of $15 million over 20 years, is out with a new tell-all book. [Vegas Business]

🤔 Does Las Vegas Celebrate Nevada Day?

It’s huge in Northern Nevada, but we think Nevada Day, which honors the day in 1864 that the state officially joined the Union, deserves more love than it typically gets from Vegas. If you’d like to get on board, we’ve got several ideas for how you can celebrate. In today’s episode, the team also breaks down Nevada’s struggle to tax marijuana and plans for your Halloween weekend. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]