RGJ 2022 voter guide: Reno attorneys vie for vacant justice of the peace position – Reno Gazette Journal

Three candidates are vying to serve as Justice of the Peace in Reno’s second department after Judge Peter Sferrazza retired in October 2020.
The candidates include attorneys Bruce Hahn, Cotter Conway and Kendra Bertschy. 
Justices of the Peace generally handle misdemeanor crimes, as well as traffic offenses and arrest warrants. They also handle eviction cases and officiate weddings.
We spoke with each of the candidates about their experience and goals should they be elected. 
Kendra Bertschy, 36, is a deputy public defender and government affairs liaison with the Washoe County Public Defender’s Office. She’s lived in Nevada for close to a decade and lives near the University of Nevada, Reno.
What makes you uniquely qualified to serve in this role?  
A judge’s role is to resolve disputes without bias or undue influence. I will do this with compassion, reasoning, and proper interpretation of the law. Everyone who appears in court should have equal and unfettered access to the rights and protections afforded to them. I am an experienced criminal, civil, and family attorney.  I have represented both victims of crime and those accused of them. I have dedicated my career to public service and serving our community.
You would handle evictions if you are elected. Considering the current housing crisis our community is in, what kind of challenges do you foresee in this role and how will the state of housing play into your decision making, if at all? 
The housing crisis is an issue that has impacted many of our citizens.  As a judicial officer, I will follow the law.  I have worked with both tenants and landlords on eviction issues in the past and will resolve disputes without bias or undue influence.
Across the nation, there’s been a lot of review and reform of sentencing when it comes to misdemeanor crimes such as prostitution and drug use. What kind of approach do you see yourself taking when it comes to sentencing for crimes, particularly in these categories? 
The legislature has created sentencing options that allow an individual to participate in evidenced based specialty courts. These are cost-saving courts that focus on rehabilitation and community safety.  I have worked to enhance access to those courts, including Veterans Court.  The laws state what a judge may consider when sentencing those convicted of prostitution charges and those with substance use disorders.  If elected, I will be fair and impartial. 
Cotter Conway, 56, has practiced law in Nevada for 30 years. He’s lived in the Silver State since 1985 and lives in Galena.
What makes you uniquely qualified to serve in this role?
I served in the Washoe County Public Defender System for just shy of 15 years and litigated matters ranging from misdemeanors to death penalty cases. In 2007, I was selected as one of the first attorneys to staff the newly created Alternate Public Defender’s Office. In 2010, I made the leap to private practice. I am the only candidate to have served as a Judge Pro Tem. I have served in such a position in Sparks Municipal Court, Sparks Justice Court, Reno Justice Court and Incline Justice Court over the last four or five years. That experience led to my appointment in January as the Court Referee in Reno Justice Court, a newly created position that handles misdemeanor traffic citations, small claims and other matters. In addition, I am the only candidate with any experience in a Specialty Court (a holistic, court supervised, treatment program used often for defendants who have substance abuse and/or mental health issues). I have been assigned to the Co-Occurring Disorder Court in the Reno Municipal Court for the past 8 years.
You would likely handle evictions if you are elected. Considering the current housing crisis our community is in, what kind of challenges do you foresee in this role and how will the state of housing play into your decision making, if at all?
In 2021, in response to the housing crisis and the COVID pandemic, the Nevada Legislature enacted Assembly Bill 486. If the tenant has a pending application for rental assistance, then the tenant cannot be evicted (The tenant can also not be evicted if the landlord refuses to participate in the application process or refuses to accept rental assistance). However, this affirmative defense expires on June 5, 2023. Hopefully, the legislature will extend the protections of AB 486 or enact similar legislation when the Nevada Legislature convenes again in 2023.
Without the availability of rental assistance to help those tenants that qualify and the protections afforded by legislation like AB 486, a judge must follow the summary eviction process regardless of the current housing crisis and the ability of the tenant to pay. Currently, the law allows judges to stay the eviction proceeding to allow a tenant to seek rental assistance to pay rent to the landlord and allow the tenant to remain in the current housing.
Across the nation, there’s been a lot of review and reform of sentencing when it comes to misdemeanor crimes such as prostitution and drug use. What kind of approach do you see yourself taking when it comes to sentencing for crimes, particularly in these categories?
An essential feature of the modern misdemeanor court is the understanding that an individual’s behaviors are not always a result of character flaws, nor are they necessarily symptoms of mental illness. Rather, they can be behaving in a way that is used to cope with the impact of a traumatic experience. This awareness does not excuse the defendant’s criminal behavior, rather it should cause the court to adopt a new sentencing approach that could be more successful in reducing recidivism.
With my experience in Specialty Court, I would approach sentencings in misdemeanor cases as an opportunity to help the defendant address the underlying trauma that may be the cause of his criminal misconduct or misbehavior that brought him before the court. By understanding that a defendant’s behavior may be a way to cope with a traumatic experience, it will allow misdemeanor courts to craft a sentence that will not only help the defendant address that traumatic experience but reduce recidivism and avoid felony behavior in the future.
Bruce Hahn, 58, currently serves as an assistant bar counsel in Reno for the State Bar of Nevada. He’s lived in Nevada since 1994 and lives in Old Southwest Reno. 
What makes you uniquely qualified to serve in this role?
My experience and length of practice, specifically my hearing officer experience and legal experience. I’ve spent 26 years with the (Washoe County District Attorney’s) office working on cases that deal with everything from dog barking to misdemeanors to murders to child sexual assault cases. I have been on the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline — essentially a judge’s judge (hearing allegations of misconduct against judges), and I have served on the Northern Nevada Disciplinary Board (hearing allegations of misconduct against attorneys). 
You would handle evictions if you are elected. Considering the current housing crisis our community is in, what kind of challenges do you foresee in this role and how will the state of housing play into your decision making, if at all?
Depending on where you serve, not every justice of the peace does evictions, and not every justice of the peace does criminal cases, but every case is case by case. You have to be scrupulously fair in hearing out the tenant and scrupulously fair in hearing out the landlord and following the process. Eviction matters: They’re not simple, and they are time sensitive, they can be eight days or they can be 35 days. It’s difficult because you’re deciding if someone can live in their home, but I don’t know that the law allows judicial discretion because there’s a housing crisis. Moratoriums, those can be taken into account, but judicial discretion may not be appropriate. 
Across the nation, there’s been a lot of review and reform of sentencing when it comes to misdemeanor crimes such as prostitution and drug use. What kind of approach do you see yourself taking when it comes to sentencing for crimes, particularly in these categories?
I think a categorical approach is unfair. Every case needs individualized attention. I can’t say, ‘In these types of cases, I would take this approach…’ I agree that there’s been a lot of change when it comes to certain crimes and sentencing, but that’s up to the legislature, that’s for the people to decide. Our job is to follow the law. If the people want to decriminalize, or destigmatize, it’s up to them, not us. 
Jenny Kane covers arts and culture in Northern Nevada, as well as the dynamic relationship between the state and the growing Burning Man community. She also covers the state’s burgeoning cannabis industry (Check out her podcast, the Potcast, on iTunes.) Support her work in Reno by subscribing to RGJ.com right here. 

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