Man gets probation for attacking veteran on Las Vegas bus
A North Las Vegas man who punched a military veteran on a public bus last year, causing him to lose his right eye, must serve up to five years’ probation for the attack.
Nathaniel Graves was sentenced Nov. 30 by District Judge Kathleen Delaney. He pleaded guilty in July to battery resulting in substantial bodily harm on a victim 60 years or older.
Graves punched 64-year-old Roger Conant on a Regional Transportation Commission bus around 5:15 p.m. on Dec. 13, 2019, according to court documents. The attack was captured on bus surveillance video.
Conant boarded the bus at Shadow Lane, near Charleston and Martin Luther King boulevards, and told police that he tried to find a seat at the rear of the bus.
Graves was sitting with a bag next to him and his feet propped on the seat across the aisle, and Conant asked Graves to move his legs so he could sit down. Graves initially complied, according to his arrest report.
Security video shows Conant sitting across from Graves, who placed his feet on Conant’s lap. When Graves refused to move his feet, the veteran pushed them off, the report states. Graves kicked his feet up again and said, “If you touch them again, I’ll beat your ass!”
After Conant brushed Graves’ feet off a second time, Graves stood up, the video shows. He punched Conant in the face, pulled him up to a standing position, and punched him in the face again, knocking him to the ground. He then collected his belongings and walked off the bus.
Graves was 26 when he was arrested in January. He spent eight months in custody while awaiting his sentencing.
Contact Briana Erickson at berickson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5244. Follow @ByBrianaE on Twitter.
