EDITORIAL: Clueless constable

Speaking of appeals: Embattled Las Vegas Constable John Bonaventura is asking the Nevada Supreme Court to help him keep his job.

Bonaventura, you’ll recall, so disgraced his elected office that county commissioners abolished it last year. The ordinance takes effect Jan. 4, 2015, which allows Bonaventura to complete his four-year term before finding some other way to embarrass himself.

As reported Thursday by the Review-Journal’s Ben Botkin, Bonaventura argues in his Supreme Court motion that the county’s decision to take the constable’s office off the 2014 ballot amounts to premature enforcement of the law. He wants the court to order county election officials to restore the office to the ballot and allow him to submit official candidacy papers during the March 3-14 filing period. Bonaventura has filed a lawsuit to strike down the ordinance that closes his office, and he argues in his motion that should he be denied a spot on the ballot and win his case at a later date, the county would have to hold a special election at great expense.

Constables have full law enforcement powers and collect fees to serve legal documents, including eviction notices. Bonaventura would have a compelling case if he were a dedicated, competent public servant singled out for political retribution. He isn’t. Bonaventura has been sued and arrested, and he and some of his deputies have been accused of incompetence and abusing their power. He’s a clown, and his antics have been all over the news for more than three years.

If Bonaventura somehow appears on this year’s ballot — whether it’s for constable or another office — he’ll draw at least one challenger, and citizens will be too happy to vote for anyone but him. Yes, Bonaventura won election in 2010 against all odds. But voters won’t make the same mistake twice. He’s deluding himself if he thinks he has a chance to win another vote.

One way or another, Bonaventura’s career in public office will end after this year — no matter what the court decides.