The lawyer for a longtime judge in a small southern Nevada town says a state judicial oversight panel is exceeding its authority with allegations of abuse of power and ethics violations against his client.
Attorney Al Marquis on Wednesday branded as "one-sided and biased" a Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline complaint against Goodsprings Township Justice of the Peace Dawn Haviland.
Marquis says Haviland will seek dismissal of the complaint filed March 1.
Haviland was suspended with pay in December.
She could face a range of sanctions if she's found guilty of conduct including sealing the criminal records of her daughter's then-husband, and ordering court staff to conduct illegal criminal records searches.
Marquis says every judge in the state should be worried if the commission can bring a judge up on charges for applying the law in the course of his or her official duties.