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Wesley Duncan

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Wes Duncan
Member of the Nevada Assembly
from the 37th district
In office
February 4, 2013 – December 4, 2014
Preceded byMarcus Conklin
Succeeded byGlenn E. Trowbridge
Personal details
Born
Wesley Karl Duncan

(1980-12-26) December 26, 1980 (age 43)
Sonora, California, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseJennifer Duncan
Children2
EducationColumbia College, California
University of California, Berkeley (BA)
Ohio State University (JD)
WebsiteOfficial website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Air Force
Years of service2007–present
RankMajor

Wesley Karl Duncan[1] is a Nevada attorney and Republican politician. He served as First Assistant Attorney General of Nevada from 2014 to September 2017[2] and as a Republican member of the Nevada Assembly from 2013 to 2014.

Early life and education

Duncan was born on December 26, 1980 in Sonora, California. His father was a 42-year employee of the United Parcel Service, as well as an active member of the Teamsters. His mother was a teacher's assistant at his high school.[citation needed]

After high school, Duncan stayed home to attend community college while earning an AA from Columbia College. He later transferred to University of California, Berkeley, where he earned his Bachelor's Degree.[citation needed]

Duncan attended the Ohio State University, Moritz College of Law, where he received his law degree.[citation needed]

Military service

After graduating from law school, Duncan was commissioned as an officer in the United States Air Force. While serving on active duty, he deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and worked at the Central Criminal Court of Iraq. After four and a half years of active duty service, Duncan entered the Air Force Reserves. He currently serves with the 926th Wing and holds the rank of Major.[citation needed]

Nevada First Assistant Attorney General

Immigrant families

In Duncan’s first month in office as First Assistant Attorney General, the office announced it would challenge President Barack Obama's order to shield millions from deportation and allow them to apply for work permits. Republican Governor Brian Sandoval said that he did not think he could legally override the challenge, to which he did not consent, he planned to talk with the Attorney General about it.[3]

Labor

In Duncan’s second year as First Assistant Attorney General, the office led a lawsuit in U.S. District Court suing the U.S. Department of Labor Tuesday over a new rule that would have made about 4 million higher-earning workers eligible for overtime pay.[4] The 104,000 eligible Nevada workers earning between roughly $24,000 and $48,000 annually would have earned an additional $8 million a year in overtime wages.[5] The lawsuit was successful and the rule was struck down in October 2017.[6]

Reproductive choice

During Duncan’s tenure, the Attorney General’s office signed Nevada onto at least two known lawsuits supporting abortion restrictions or pro-life entities in other states, including lawsuits supporting an Alabama ban on the most commonly used second-trimester abortion procedure.[7] In the Supreme Court case Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, the office signed Nevada onto an amicus brief in support of a Texas TRAP law that imposed medically unnecessary restrictions on abortion clinics in order to curb the availability of abortion providers.[8] The Supreme Court found the restrictions were an unconstitutional violation of the prohibition on placing an “undue burden” on the right to obtain an abortion.[9]

The Duncan-era Attorney General’s office sent a letter to Nevada Planned Parenthood facilities questioning their abortion services and asking if they donated fetal tissue, part of a wave of investigations into videos which fueled a threat to cut funding to Planned Parenthood.[10] A U.S. District Judge issued a restraining order blocking further publication of the illicitly recorded footage, which he called “misleadingly edited videos and unfounded assertions of criminal conduct.”[11] In December 2015, the Attorney’s General office closed the inquiry, confirming the facilities do not perform surgical abortions or participate in fetal tissue donation programs.[12] On September 7, 2017, Duncan’s last day as First Assistant Attorney General,[13] the office signed Nevada onto a lawsuit urging the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the release of the videos made by the anti-abortion group, whose leaders were facing felony charges in California for recording people without permission.[14] The Supreme Court declined to take up appeals by the abortion opponents and left in place the lower court’s ruling.[15]

Political Positions

Reproductive choice

Duncan opposes the right to legal abortion, saying in September 2018 “we need to continue to fight for life at every stage.”[16]

Immigration

Duncan opposes the DACA program that protected hundreds of thousands of young immigrants who came to the United States as children from deportation.[17]

Wesley Duncan on Lincoln Day in Storey County.

Elections

Duncan was unopposed for the 2012 Republican Primary for the 37th District. In the general election, he faced Democratic Assemblyman Marcus Conklin, who was serving as Majority Leader of the Nevada Assembly. On November 6, Duncan defeated Conklin with 14,969 votes (51.5%).[18]. Duncan was named Freshman Legislator of the year for the Assembly by the Las Vegas Review Journal.[citation needed]

In 2014, Duncan won reelection as District 37 Assemblyman with 61.4%. However, he resigned his seat on December 4, after accepting an offer from Attorney-General-elect Adam Laxalt for appointment to the position of First Assistant Attorney General.[citation needed]

On November 2, 2017, Duncan announced his campaign for Attorney General of Nevada.[19]

2018 Attorney General's race

Endorsements

Attorney General Adam Laxalt

Duncan was endorsed by Attorney General Adam Laxalt, under whom he worked from 2014 to 2017, who said “Our next Attorney General must be ready, willing and able to serve you on day one to ensure your constitutional rights and your communities are protected. That is why I’m supporting Wes Duncan for Attorney General. Nevada Law Enforcement has made their voices heard and are standing squarely with Wes and I am proud to do so as well.”[20]

Nevada Sheriffs

17 Nevada sheriffs endorsed Duncan’s campaign for Attorney General.[21]

Storey County Sheriff Gerald Antinoro

Storey County Sheriff Gerald Antinoro was accused of rape in 2014.[22] A 2016 independent investigation found that Antinoro sexually harassed his top deputy.[23] Storey County Administrator Austin Osborne said in a deposition that “numerous…more than 10” complaints including sexual harassment allegations were filed against Antinoro.[24] After the sexual harassment investigation, Antinoro faced a recall election.[25] Wes Duncan was endorsed by Antinoro in November 2017 after he announced his candidacy.[26] Duncan publicized a campaign meeting with Antinoro in March 2018.[27][28] In April 2018, Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center called on the Nevada Attorney General to rescind the endorsement he received from Antinoro and to investigate multiple allegations of sexual harassment against Antinoro.[29] Duncan faced scrutiny for refusing to disavow Antinoro’s support.[30] Duncan did not respond to questions about Antinoro’s support for his campaign.[31]

In May 2018, Duncan dismissed criticism of his refusal to reject the endorsement or denounce Antinoro as “purely political.”[32] At the end of May, Duncan was scheduled to campaign with Antinoro but Antinoro announced he would not attend after the event was picked up in media.[33] In June 2018, Duncan said the Attorney General’s office had an ongoing criminal investigation of Antinoro’s alleged sexual misconduct and that if he won the office and the investigation was still ongoing, anything he said about it would immediately be seized upon as bias by Antinoro supporters.[34]

Three days before the investigation results were released, Duncan’s campaign manager released a statement saying Duncan would not campaign with Antinoro, did not want his endorsement and had removed the endorsement from Duncan’s campaign website.[35] On July 9th 2018, the Attorney General’s office released the long-awaited investigative report into Antinoro and announced that it would not pursue criminal charges.[36] An October 2018 letter showed that the Attorney’s General office met with former deputy sheriff Melanie Keener in early 2016, at which time the deputy shared details of Antinoro’s history of sexually harassing employees.[37]

National Rifle Association

The National Rifle Association endorsed Duncan and gave him an A+ rating.[38]

Republican Governor Brian Sandoval's decision not to endorse

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, a Republican, announced he would not take a position in the race for Attorney General, saying Duncan was “a hardworking person that I was impressed with” and, of his opponent, that “I worked with Sen. Ford, and my experience with him has been very positive. He’s a very committed public servant.”[39]

Fundraising

Contributions received

Duncan received contributions from billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson, the NRA and the Fertitta brothers.[40]

Controversy over fundraising as a state employee

Duncan made a point on the campaign trail to say that he left the attorney general’s office because he didn’t want to run for public office as a state employee. But prior to leaving his job in the attorney general’s office in September 2017, campaign finance reports showed Duncan had raised some $190,000 over the first eight months of 2017 while still working as a state employee. Duncan said he regarded his campaign fundraising as a second job and chose to leave his official position in September 2017 because it was getting to the point where he “could not have done both jobs well.”[41] Duncan's Republican primary opponent, attorney Craig Mueller, filed a racketeering lawsuit alleging Duncan “solicited campaign contributions from the very businesses which he held regulatory and/or disciplinary authority over” when he collected $190,000 from businesses and entities including Station Casinos, Resort World Las Vegas, Nevada Power Company and Comcast Corporation. From January 2017 to August, Duncan and his campaign committee “agreed to and did in fact conduct and participate in the conduct of the enterprise’s affairs through a pattern of continuous and related racketeering activity in a closed-ended scheme,” Mueller’s complaint stated.[42]

Personal life

Duncan lives with his wife Jennifer and their two sons, ages four and three, in Las Vegas, NV.

Duncan is a partner at Hutchison & Steffen Law, working in the Firm’s Administrative Law and Litigation practice groups.[43]

References

  1. ^ "Assemblyman Wesley Duncan". Carson City, Nevada: Nevada Legislature. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  2. ^ "Top Laxalt lieutenant, expected attorney general candidate Wes Duncan departs AG's office for private law firm". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  3. ^ "Sandoval unsure if he can override Laxalt's decision on immigration lawsuit - Las Vegas Sun Newspaper". lasvegassun.com. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  4. ^ "Laxalt files suit to block OT pay expansion". Associated Press. 9/20/16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "Report: Laxalt, Duncan cost Nevadans $8 million in overtime | Nevada Current". Nevada Current. 2018-09-14. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  6. ^ "https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/10/01/obama-s-overtime-rule-struck-down-trump-s.html". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2018-10-31. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  7. ^ "Laxalt signs Nevada on to support Alabama abortion restrictions; had backed similar law in Texas". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  8. ^ "Texas Law Could Lead To Closure Of Clinics That Offer Abortions". NPR.org. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  9. ^ "Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Restrictions". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  10. ^ "Planned Parenthood Investigations Find No Fetal Tissue Sales". NPR.org. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  11. ^ "Texas antiabortion activists used fraud, judge in S.F. rules". SFGate. 2016-02-06. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  12. ^ http://www.washingtontimes.com, The Washington Times. "Nevada AG closes inquiry into Planned Parenthood". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2018-10-31. {{cite news}}: External link in |last= (help)
  13. ^ "Top Laxalt lieutenant, expected attorney general candidate Wes Duncan departs AG's office for private law firm". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  14. ^ "20 GOP states want anti-abortion group"s videos released". Santa Cruz Sentinel. 2017-09-07. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  15. ^ Chung, Andrew. "Supreme Court rejects appeal to release anti-abortion activists'..." U.S. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  16. ^ "New ad claims Duncan wants to 'outlaw' abortion, targeted Planned Parenthood in AG's office". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  17. ^ "One year since rescission of DACA, DREAMers, Democrats mark 'discouraging anniversary'". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  18. ^ "2012 Official Statewide General Election Results November 6, 2012". Carson City, Nevada: Secretary of State of Nevada. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  19. ^ Lochhead, Colton (11/2/2017). "Former GOP Assemblyman Wes Duncan enters Nevada AG race". Las Vegas Review Journal. Retrieved 02/09/2017. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |access-date= and |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  20. ^ "Attorney General Adam Laxalt Endorses Wes Duncan | Wes Duncan". wesduncan.com. Retrieved 2018-10-31. {{cite web}}: no-break space character in |title= at position 17 (help)
  21. ^ "Wes Duncan launches background-heavy, first general election campaign ad". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  22. ^ Group, Sinclair Broadcast. "On Your Side: Storey County Sheriff race turns ugly". KRNV. Retrieved 2018-10-31. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  23. ^ "Major Reno developer to Laxalt: Investigate sexual harassment claims against embattled Storey County sheriff". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  24. ^ "Former Storey County deputy sheriff, her career in tatters, talks about filing complaint against sheriff". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  25. ^ "Group files recall petition against Storey County Sheriff". KTNV. 2016-11-24. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  26. ^ "Nevada Law Enforcement Supports Wes Duncan | Wes Duncan". 2018-06-14. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  27. ^ "Wes Duncan - @WesDuncan on Twitter". 2018-04-25. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  28. ^ "Screenshot via The Nevada Independent". 4/26/18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  29. ^ "Major Reno developer to Laxalt: Investigate sexual harassment claims against embattled Storey County sheriff". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  30. ^ "These Dems are running for a top office. So what are they doing in the middle of Nevada?". Reno Gazette Journal. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  31. ^ "Democrats attack Laxalt, Duncan over endorsement from embattled rural sheriff". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  32. ^ "Nevada AG candidate: Office investigating Storey County sheriff". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  33. ^ "Embattled Storey County sheriff backs out of attending political barbecue this weekend". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  34. ^ "Nevada AG candidate: Office investigating Storey County sheriff". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  35. ^ "AG candidate Duncan removes endorsement from embattled sheriff from website, won't campaign with him". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  36. ^ "Laxalt: No plans to file criminal charges against embattled Storey County sheriff, won't campaign with him". Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  37. ^ "10/17/18 Letter from the Nevada Attorney General's office" (PDF). 10/17/18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  38. ^ "NRA endorses Nevada Republicans Laxalt, Roberson, Duncan". AP NEWS. 2018-05-26. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  39. ^ "Campaign 2018: Sandoval won't back candidate in Nevada AG race". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2018-10-11. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  40. ^ "2018 Contributions & Expenses Report #4 - Secretary of State of Nevada". www.nvsos.gov. Retrieved 2018-11-04.
  41. ^ "GOP hopeful raised $190,000 while in Nevada AG's office". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2018-04-15. Retrieved 2018-11-04.
  42. ^ "Nevada AG candidate calls foe's campaign fundraising 'extortion'". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2018-06-02. Retrieved 2018-11-04.
  43. ^ "Wesley K. Duncan". Hutchison & Steffen. Retrieved 02/09/2018. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |access-date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
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