Robert Telles, 47, lost the Democratic Party primary for Clark County Public Administrator in Nevada after reporting by Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German. German was killed outside his home by a masked assailant. Telles, on trial, charged with his murder, insists he's been set up—but told the court that German's reportage killed his campaign.
"You believe if Mr. German had not written these four articles, you would have won the race, correct?" prosecutor Christopher Hamner asked during Telles' second day of testimony. "I do believe that, yes," Telles responded.
Telles said while he was hopeful he would win the primary race, he wasn't sure he was going to, and was ready to resume work in probate law in the event of a loss. He eventually came in third place.
In response, Hamner showed text messages between Telles and a coworker where the defendant said he was worried the articles would follow him "for years to come" and would jeopardize his career and his future.
Telles's DNA was found under German's fingernails, photos of German's house were on Telles' phone, a car matching his was seen at the scene, and he was in the unfortunate position of having to explain that "he did not destroy a shoe and hat matching those worn by the assailant." He has had problems controlling his temper in the past.
German, 69, wrote about the underbelly of "Sin City" and had covered mobsters, crooked officials and corrupt government agencies in an ink-stained life. Yet prosecutors said it was his coverage of a little-known office run by an elected county official that led to the murder. German had written about allegations of wrongdoing in the Clark County Public Administrator's office, reporting that Telles created a hostile work environment and carried on an inappropriate relationship with a staffer. … He was working on a story about Telles the week he was killed, according to the Review-Journal.
Telles claims to have been framed by the party establishment. You can never really guess what a jury's going to do, but this guy is screwed six ways from Sunday.
