Judge denies request to block Las Vegas councilmen from Badlands votes
A federal judge on Thursday denied a developer’s request to block Las Vegas City Councilmen Bob Coffin and Steve Seroka from voting on items related to building on the shuttered Badlands Golf Course.
U.S. District Judge James Mahan wrote in a court order that developer Yohan Lowie and other plaintiffs in the case were asking him to keep elected officials from “engaging in legitimate government activities.”
“Issuing such an injunction would interfere with the process of democratic government and, thus, harm public interest,” Mahan wrote.
Lowie filed the emergency motion in court last month, claiming that Coffin and Seroka could not give a fair hearing to the developer’s proposal to build homes on the Badlands. The motion cited the councilmen’s past comments and recent emails and text messages as evidence.
The councilmen in a response to the court this week disputed the claims of bias and argued that a court order blocking them from voting would violate the separation of powers.
Contact Michael Scott Davidson at sdavidson@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861. Follow @davidsonlvrj on Twitter.
