POWER AND PRIVILEGE

Ex-Vegas Mayor Jan Jones' Son Sued For Strangling
Cocktail Waitress In Caesars Palace PURE Nightclub

Ceasars Palace, Pure, and Jan Jones recently added as co-Defendants

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      Michelle McKenna                        Patrick Jones                          Jan Jones-Blackhurst

INSIDE VEGAS EXCLUSIVE
Copyright © Steve Miller
AmericanMafia.com
December 30, 2013

LAS VEGAS - Former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Jones is currently Executive Vice President in charge of Communications and Government Relations for Caesars Entertainment Corporation that owns Caesars Palace and is landlord to PURE, one of Sin City's hottest night spots.

In her lofty job, Jones (now known as Jan Jones-Blackhurst) has comp privileges at Caesars, or in Vegas parlance - the "Power of the pen."

On January 3, 2009, and again in June of that year, Jones used her Caesars Entertainment position to gain VIP status and complimentary liquor for her then-23 year old son Patrick and his friends at Pure.

According to eyewitnesses, on January 3, 2009, PURE cocktail waitress Michelle McKenna was strangled by Patrick Jones resulting in serious injuries to the left and right carotid arteries in her neck, along with other injuries.

As Executive VP in charge of Government Relations, Jan Jones-Blackhurst is the go-to person at Caesars Entertainment for politicians soliciting political donations around election time, so it was not a surprise when then-Clark County District Attorney David Roger refused to prosecute Patrick after being informed of the assault.

Reliable sources tell INSIDE VEGAS that Patrick has had problems with substance abuse, and extensive efforts have been made by his mother and his father, auto dealer Fletcher ?Ted? Jones Jr. (left), to try to help him. This may have been a factor in his violent conduct at PURE, but certainly is no excuse for such behavior.
 

Apparently showing no remorse, in June 2009, six months after the assault, sources at PURE say Jones-Blackhurst again comped her son to an expensive night of partying in the club. While Michelle McKenna was home trying to recover from her injuries, PURE staff who had witnessed her assault told INSIDE VEGAS that they "freaked out" when they saw Patrick back in the club being treated as a VIP, and no one wanted to serve his entourage, but management reportedly forced a waitress to do so against her will.

This civil lawsuit was originally filed on November 28, 2010 after the District Attorney refused to take criminal action. Unbeknownst to Michelle McKenna, she may have hired a Jones-Blackhurst crony as her first attorney.

I believe David Chesnoff, the private attorney recommended to McKenna by a friend, was a crony of Jan Jones-Blackhurst, and as evidence of this connection refused to name Caesars Palace, Jones-Blackhurst, or Pure Nightclub as Defendants - just Patrick was named.

Its too obvious that Chesnoff, the politically connected attorney-partner of another former LV mayor, purposefully allowed the case to languish by neglecting to schedule depositions; eyewitness interviews; an independent medical exam; or interview potential expert medical witnesses, in addition to requesting continuance after continuance for over three years to possibly frustrate the court enough to allow a quick summary judgment in Patrick's favor, but that's only my opinion.

With new, unconflicted council hired in August 2013, McKenna was finally able to move her case forward, and her new attorneys Ruth Cohen and Paul Padda, both former Federal Prosecutors, have filed an Amended Complaint now including Caesars Entertainment Corporation, Jones-Blackhurst, AMG Management, LLC (d.b.a. Pure Nightclub), and TOUCH, LLC (d.b.a. Pure Nightclub) as Defendants. The case is progressing in a timely manner, and a Trial by Jury is anticipated sometime in 2014.

Below are recent Events and Orders of the Court including the Subrogation and Intervention of National Surety Corporation, the Fire & Casualty insurance company that is paying McKenna's ongoing medical bills. Also listed are an Opposition, and Motion for Reconsideration filed by the Defendants. By its intervention as a co-Plaintiff, the insurance company obviously believes it is entitled to recover from Jones, et. al. the medical expenditures the insurer made and continues to make on Michelle McKenna's behalf. I believe National Surety's intervention bolsters McKenna's case.

The Clark County District Court Judge in this case is the Honorable Michael P. Villani (left)

Events and Orders of the Court: (Bold highlights added by Steve Miller)

08/01/2013     Substitution of Attorney
Substitution of Attorneys

Minutes
08/21/2013 8:30 AM
-  This is the time set for hearing on Plaintiff and Defendant's Joint Motion to Continue Trial and Extend Discovery Deadlines on Order Shortening Time. Court noted that the parties were directed by the Discovery Commissioner to file said Motion to Continue Trial with the District Court as the discovery deadlines have already been extended five (5) times. Ms. Bohlke CONCURRED. Additionally, Ms. Bohlke advised that the Plaintiff is still treating and the reason for the most recent continuance is that authorization has just been given for an Independent Medical Examination (IME) of the Plaintiff. Plaintiff has also just recently retained new counsel and has also developed vertigo; therefore, additional time is necessary to name new experts and rebuttal experts. Plaintiff's injuries have magnified over time. This is a Joint request and the parties are requesting that the discovery period be extended for one hundred twenty (120) days; the trial should then be continued until sometime after the discovery cut-off date. Ms. Cohen advised she just got into the case; it is very complicated and there are a lot of medical records. An IME is going to be performed some time in the future; the Plaintiff is not well. Upon Court's inquiry, Ms. Cohen advised that the date of the incident is January 3, 2009. Colloquy regarding Plaintiff's treatment; Court noted that a change in counsel is not necessarily a good cause to continue trial. COURT ORDERED, Motion to Continue Trial and Extend Discovery Deadlines is GRANTED. The current Discovery cut-off date shall be extended to December 24, 2013. Counsel shall prepare a Stipulated Scheduling Order with the amended discovery deadlines for this Court's signature. COURT FURTHER ORDERED, trial date VACATED and RESET. Court noted this trial will not be continued again. 04/09/14 9:00 AM CALENDAR CALL 04/21/14 9:00 AM JURY TRIAL

10/17/2013     Order
Order Granting National Surety Corporation's Motion to Intervene

10/21/2013     Opposition to Motion
(Defendant's) Opposition to Motion to Amend Complaint

10/30/2013     Motion for Leave  (3:00 AM) (Judicial Officer Villani, Michael) Plaintiff's Motion for Leave to Amend the Complaint Result: Granted

12/11/2013     Affidavit of Service
Affidavit of Service: Caesars Entertainment Corp.

12/11/2013     Affidavit of Service
Affidavit of Service: AMG Management, LLC (D.B.A. "Pure Nightclub")

12/16/2013     Motion to Reconsider
(Defendant's) Motion for Reconsideration re: Order Granting Plaintiff's Motion to Amend Complaint

01/22/2014    (Hearing)
(Defendant's) Motion for Reconsideration re: Order Granting Plaintiff's Motion to Amend Complaint (Judicial Officer Villani, Michael)

04/09/2014     Calendar Call  (9:00 AM) (Judicial Officer Villani, Michael)

04/21/2014     Jury Trial  (9:00 AM) (Judicial Officer Villani, Michael)

This is the first time this story has been told, but in today's Las Vegas, its no wonder. Caesars Entertainment wields tremendous influence over our media and public officials. The name Jan Jones is sacrosanct around here, and I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for local media to pick up this story. However, INSIDE VEGAS, as with other court cases we've covered, plans to attend hearings and cover all developments in detail on AmericanMafia.com, along with reporting Breaking News in Steve Miller's frequent Las Vegas Insider E-Briefs that are read by attorneys, law enforcement officials, and journalists throughout the nation (click HERE to subscribe to this free service).

FULL McKENNA vs. JONES AMENDED COMPLAINT:
http://www.stevemiller4lasvegas.com/McKENNAvsJONES-AmendedComplaint.html

HAPPY NEW YEAR!