Ethics panel finds credible evidence Reese violated two ethics laws

The Nevada Commission on Ethics is again investigating Reno City Council member Devon Reese after an ethics panel found credible evidence that Reese violated two Nevada ethics laws. 

The panel unanimously determined on Sept. 17 that there is “just cause” for the commission to decide on the alleged violations. Reese is alleged to have violated NRS 281A.400(2), which prohibits using a government position to secure unwarranted privileges or advantages for oneself or others, and NRS 281A.400(9), which bars attempting to benefit personal interests through the influence of a subordinate.

The complaints were generated by citizens on March 18 and April 22, weeks after This Is Reno published a 10-part investigation into spending at Reno City Hall. The complaints were based on This Is Reno’s investigation.

The series was published in February and detailed how Reese spent city funds to attend a $21,000 training at the Harvard Kennedy School. His travel records also showed he added days to city-funded trips while charging the city for extra expenses. On one trip, he used city funds to pay for a rental car and drove 300 miles in it while staying at a hotel next to where the conference he attended was held.

Reese said he paid back any extra expenses, but city records showed no such payments.

“I found this behavior by Reese to be abhorrent, and I feel Reese should be investigated and removed from the City Council,” the first complainant noted.

The second complainant, an “expert in financial crimes and investigations,” said: “Reese submitted frivolous official travel expenses which were extravagant and personal in nature. [They] were dubiously approved by City Manager Doug Thornley (who serves at the pleasure of the city council) against city guidelines.”

Thornley resigned weeks after This Is Reno’s reporting. He gave no reason for quitting. After the series was published, the City of Reno’s financial advisory board requested an audit of spending. On Saturday, the Nevada Press Association awarded This Is Reno the series’ top investigative report for urban news.

The ethics commission instructed its executive director to investigate the complaints, which were consolidated. Commissioners Stan Olsen, Michael Langton and Terry Reynolds formed the review panel that advanced the ethics complaints to the full ethics commission. 

Langton abstained from participation and voting. “Commissioner Langton determined it was appropriate to abstain from this matter to avoid the appearance of bias or impropriety in the proceedings,” the panel’s determination stated.

The panel reviewed the complaints, responses and the executive director’s recommendation. Most materials provided to the review panel are confidential as part of the investigatory file, according to ethics commission staff. The full ethics commission will review evidence and potentially hold hearings. If found in violation, Reese could face penalties.

Reese, in March 2023, struck a deferral agreement with the ethics commission following a complaint alleging he failed to disclose a business relationship while participating in union negotiations and voting to approve union contracts. The commission found sufficient evidence to warrant a full review of the allegations, but Reese agreed to defer a full panel review if he committed to ethics training and did not have additional ethics violations for two years. 

With the latest investigation, the 2023 deferral could be rescinded.  

Earlier this year, the city council was also hit with an Open Meeting Law complaint for a rant by Reese during an April 10 City Council meeting, during which he argued with city attorneys, warning him to stay on topic for the meeting. 

This Is Reno reached out to Reese for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. In a social media post after his first ethics complaint, he said he was ethical, called the complaint a “misunderstanding” and said the complaint was the result of “misreporting.” 

“I work hard to be the best, most ethical public servant I can be,” he wrote. “One of the challenges of being a public servant these days is constantly having your ethics not just questioned but maligned, especially based on misunderstandings or misreporting.”

Ethics complaints also filed against Council member Martinez

Council member Miguel Martinez also faced ethics complaints following This Is Reno’s reporting. City records showed Martinez stayed in $900/night rooms on city trips while also adding days to conference trips, which he claimed as expenses to the city. 

He paid back about $2,000 but refused to say how he came up with that amount. Martinez posted on X that he was “a ‘humble’ servant, and I will live that, here: I was wrong. I am the one who signed the paperwork and turned in the receipts for reimbursements that were incorrect.” That post was used as evidence against him.

The complaint against Martinez alleged he violated the same ethics law as Reese. What’s different is that the ethics commission initiated the complaint against Martinez, not a member of the public.

Nevada Ethics Commission Director Ross Armstrong used This Is Reno’s reporting as the reason for the complaint.

The panel determined there was enough evidence for a full commission opinion, but his “conduct may be appropriately addressed through corrective action under the terms of a deferral agreement. He must agree to complete ethics training within 60 days of the deferral agreement and must submit his travel records to the commission’s executive director within 30 days of travel.” 

Martinez must also “provide evidence to the Executive Director [of the Commission on Ethics] that Martinez is working with City leadership to improve travel training, processes and procedures to prevent others from inappropriately expending public funds on private interests.”

After This Is Reno’s investigation, citizens came forward and noted that Martinez had posted about traveling with his family on at least one work trip and that he should have known better since he is an employee of Truckee Meadows Community College, which has similar travel policies as the city.

Update: This story was updated to include information from the ethics commission not available at the time of original publication.