Prosecutor tells judge investigation into Henderson lawyer’s death winding down
A prosecutor has told a judge that he will know within a month whether longtime psychologist Gregory “Brent” Dennis will be charged in the January 2015 death of his wife, attorney Susan Winters.
District Judge Linda Bell disclosed in court Friday that the prosecutor, Chief Deputy District Attorney Marc DiGiacomo, sent her an email requesting a 30-day halt to a civil case stemming from Winters’ death.
Bell, who granted the stay, said DiGiacomo told her that he did not want the civil case to interfere with the criminal investigation as it draws to a close.
The civil case, filed against Dennis by Winters’ parents, has been on hold since Dennis became the focus of the criminal investigation several months ago.
The Clark County coroner’s office concluded in 2015 that Winters, 48, killed herself by consuming a lethal combination of prescription painkillers and antifreeze at the Henderson home she shared with Dennis and the couple’s two daughters.
But a Sept. 15 Las Vegas Review-Journal story raised questions about whether Winters committed suicide, disclosing that the district attorney’s office had informed Dennis that he was a target of a county grand jury investigating his wife’s death.
Last month, Henderson police executed search warrants, and prosecutors began calling witnesses to the grand jury.
Two years ago, Dennis told authorities that he believed his wife killed herself, police reports show. He said he called 911 the morning of her death after he found her unresponsive in bed. Earlier, an emotionally upset Winters had been drinking and taking antidepressant medication, including Xanax, he said.
Her parents, Avis and Danny Winters, however, turned the tables on Dennis and blamed him in their lawsuit for their daughter’s untimely demise.
On Friday, defense lawyer Richard Schonfeld, who represents Dennis, accused the parents’ lawyers of using a media communications firm to mount a smear campaign against Dennis to influence the civil case.
“That conduct is intolerable,” Schonfeld argued. “They have to suffer the consequences of their improper conduct.”
Schonfeld is seeking sanctions, including the removal of attorneys Anthony Sgro and David Roger, who represent the parents, and their firm from the case.
The lawyers deny any misconduct, and Bell said she would issue a written order on whether to impose sanctions.
Bell set a status conference in the case for Feb. 21.
Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4564. Follow @JGermanRJ on Twitter.