LAS VEGAS — The Clark County District Attorney’s office is expected to file a complaint Tuesday asking a judge to remove Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles from office.
“We are alleging that he is neglectful in his duties as the public administrator,” Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said Tuesday morning. “We’re seeking an order from the court of his removal from office.”
Telles, who has been charged with murder in the killing of Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative reporter Jeff German, appeared in court Tuesday morning in front of Justice of the Peace Pro Tem William Jansen.
His defense attorney, Travis Shetler, was excused from the case on Tuesday. Jansen appointed public defenders Edward Kane and David Lopez-Negrete to represent Telles going forward.
Attorneys did not argue whether Telles should be granted bail on Tuesday, so Jansen ordered him to be held without bail. A preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled for Oct. 26.
Telles, 45, is accused of “lying in wait” to kill German, who was fatally stabbed. Prosecutors have charged him with a felony count of murder with a deadly weapon of a victim who is an older person.
German, 69, was found dead at his home the morning of Sept. 3, about 24 hours after a suspect in his killing was caught on video surveillance approaching his house.
This year, German had reported a series of investigative stories about Telles’ oversight of the public administrator’s office, which included allegations of bullying, favoritism, and an inappropriate relationship between Telles and a staffer.
Police released an image of the suspect’s vehicle on Sept. 6, and Review-Journal reporters spotted a vehicle matching the car’s description at Telles’ home later that night. Telles was arrested the following day, hours after police executed a search warrant at his home.
DNA found under German’s fingernails matched Telles’ DNA, officials have said. Police who searched Telles’ home also found bloody shoes and a cut-up straw hat resembling the one worn by the suspect, according to Telles’ arrest report.
Telles gave a jailhouse interview to the Review-Journal on Friday but declined to answer direct questions about German’s killing. He has been held without bail at the Clark County Detention Center.
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