At the November 1 Mineral County Board of Commissioners meeting, Mineral County District Attorney T. Jaren Stanton made the following statement:
“As Mineral County District Attorney, I have an obligation under Nevada law to ensure compliance among County departments and elected officials. Based upon the residence requirements set forth in NRS 283.040, and the requirements placed upon me as the District Attorney, I formally requested the resignation of Commissioner Cassie Hall. In consequence of that request, I received the attached letter from Commissioner Hall.”
Cassie Hall’s Resignation Letter
“Effective immediately, I am resigning Seat A, Board of County Commissioners. Due to recent upheavals in my personal and professional life, I have pursued and will be taking employment opportunities out of state. At this juncture, it is the most beneficial course of action for myself and for the future of the Board. Because I recognize this will be a public document, I contemplated addressing the many missteps and misrepresentations of my character by county representatives, as well as other offenses in the community, but that would require stooping to a level I was working to raise Mineral County up from. That said, this is an opportunity to learn, to grow, and to change—one I hope the Board will take very seriously. Improvement is imperative. Thank you for your time. It was a pleasure serving Mineral County alongside you.
Sincerely,
Honorable Catherine “Cassie” M. Hall”
Next Steps for the County
The District Attorney said that it was his understanding that the criminal investigation about Hall’s county spending allegations through the Nevada State Investigation Division would continue until they reach a conclusion. Since the matter is out of Mineral County’s jurisdiction, he does not know how the investigation will go but believes that they could send their findings to the Attorney General’s office to file charges against her.
The Governor’s Office has been notified of Hall’s resignation and under the NRS (Nevada Revised Statutes), the Governor’s Office appoints the replacement for the county commissioner’s seat. The existing commissioners could recommend two names to the governor, but current Mineral County Commissioners Curtis Schlepp and Larry Grant have declined to do so.
If the current commissioners wanted to submit a list of potential candidates to the Governor’s Office, the governor would have 15 days to make that appointment. However, without that then the seat could remain empty.
With only two commissioners on the Washoe County Board (Curtis Schlepp and Larry Grant), there must be two yes votes for any motion to pass.
“With three board members there must be a majority vote, but now with two members if one person votes ‘yes’ and another votes ‘no’, then it fails,” Stanton says. Likewise, if one member votes ‘yes’ and another abstains, then the motion fails.
Stanton reiterates that it is not a county responsibility to appoint Hall’s replacement and that it is done through the Governor’s Office.
