VIRGINIA CITY - Nevada Supreme Court justices made history Monday, appearing in the Storey County courthouse for the first time to hear an appeal in the case of three men accused of killing wild horses two years ago.
The hearing - presided over by three of the state's high judges - addressed a March 8 decision by District Judge Michael Griffin to dismiss all but one charge against the defendants.
Storey County District Attorney Janet Hess and Deputy District Attorney Sharon Claassen also argued that reducing the alleged killings from felonies to gross misdemeanors is incongruent with Nevada law.
In the disputed decision, Griffin said evidence was insufficient to connect Reno-natives Anthony Merlino, Darien Brock and Scott Brendle to all but one of the horse deaths. He also said because the shootings were charged as property crimes, using the aggregate value of the horses - price per pound - was not an accurate measure of their individual values.
The decision reduced the charges from 27 felonies to one gross misdemeanor. The difference means the men, if convicted, face a maximum one year in jail versus 10 years in prison. At the time, Griffin said "Without the admission of the defendants, you have no case."
During initial questioning, Brendle admitted shooting a horse, Merlino said he shot a wounded horse and Brock said he fired into a herd. The trio have denied any further involvement.
The story gained national attention after 34 horse carcasses were discovered in late December 1998 near Largomarcino Canyon in the hills east of Reno.
Following a tip Storey and Washoe County officials, questioned and arrested the three men. Brendle and Brock, both Marine lance corporals, were dishonorably discharged. Merlino worked in construction in Reno.
A trial on the remaining charge, scheduled for Nov. 1 in Griffin's courtroom, was delayed pending the state supreme court's decision, expected in the next few weeks.
Following Supreme Court procedure, each side was given 30 minutes to argue. Justices interrupted periodically to ask specific questions about the location of the carcasses or types of firearms used.
Pushing for a reversal of Griffin's decision, Claassen said the admissions, though limited to specific actions, incriminate the men in all the alleged killings. Using the example of a burglary, she said if several items are stolen and a suspect is caught with one of the items, it is reasonable to infer that the suspect stole the other items.
In rebuttal, Brendle's attorney, John Ohlson, said the ballistic evidence - several different types of cartridges were used - suggests there may have been more than one shooter. Using the same burglary analogy, he said when there have been several burglaries it is unreasonable to infer that one suspect stole all of the items.
He added that the state's pursuit of felony charges reflects an attempt to recoup prosecution expenses. "There is a real effort to vindicate the amount of money, time and effort spent on this case."
Several .30-06 slugs were found, as well as a shotgun slug and a ball from a muzzle-loaded weapon, he argued. The men were not in possession of a .30-06 rifle. Instead, a .270-caliber rifle was found and believed to be connected to the killing of the one horse for which they remain charged. They were also found with a .22-caliber rifle and a shotgun, according to reports.
Justices A. William Maupin, who will become chief justice in January, Nancy Becker and Miriam Shearing went to Virginia City to teach area students. Twenty-seven Virginia City middle and high school students sat in for the two-hour session.
"We started with the idea of coming up here to project what we do and teach students a little bit about the legal system," Maupin said.
The court has done similar projects in other jurisdictions, but leaves Carson City only occasionally to hear cases in Las Vegas.
Because of publicity surrounding the case, and the inability to seat an impartial jury, Griffin ordered a change of venue to Carson City in April.
Reno lawyers Mark Picker and Scott Freeman are representing Brock and Merlino, respectively.
