Police observed outside side entrances to Legislative Building

CARSON CITY – Legislative police were stationed outside the side entrances of the Legislative Building late Tuesday morning, possibly to prevent Assemblyman Steven Brooks, D-North Las Vegas, from entering.

Normally, the officers are posted just inside those side entrances.

One officer refused to say why he was there as he paced back and forth outside a side entrance.

An Assembly panel reviewing Brooks’ conduct decided Monday to ban him from the building and place him on leave with pay after he was arrested Sunday in Southern Nevada, his second arrest in recent weeks.

Besides the main and back entrances of the Legislative Building, there are two side entrances that are occasionally used by legislators and guests.

There are 29 members of the legislative police, many of them retired police from departments in Nevada and other states.

Brooks faces possible expulsion from the Legislature after one arrest on allegations of threatening Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick, D-North Las Vegas, and an arrest on domestic battery and obstruction charges for incidents involving his estranged wife and Las Vegas police.

Legislative leaders intensified security after the two arrests and after launching an investigation into Brooks’ ability to serve in office.

Assembly Majority Leader William Horne, D-Las Vegas, who heads the panel looking into Brooks’ behavior, noted the need for extra security in a letter he sent to Brooks on Monday.

“Your recent arrests, which have been well publicized by the press, have caused members of the staff as well as others in the Legislative Building to fear that you will not be able to conduct yourself in a manner suitable to the Office of Assemblyman, and in fact, that you may present a direct threat to others in the building,” he wrote.

“Your presence has caused the need for heightened security and the commitment of additional resources to monitor your actions.”

Contact Capital Bureau Chief Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901.