LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Unchecked abuse of power by local law enforcement.
That's the central theme of a lawsuit against the City of Las Vegas over its marshals operating outside their limited jurisdictional authority. Now, the man in charge of the marshals wants to control what the public can say about it on social media, according to a new lawsuit that was filed on Tuesday.
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The gist of the new lawsuit is that Las Vegas Department of Public Safety Chief Jason Potts tried to privately manage his public account on X. The lawsuit says Potts restricted comments from the public, only allowing them from people he follows or has mentioned. In doing so, Potts allegedly prevented any criticism — engaging in what the lawsuit calls "viewpoint discrimination."
This all stems from a January 9 traffic stop on U.S. 95, where city marshals stopped Ohio journalist Derek Myers for alleged speeding and impairment. Myers, who's fighting the DUI charge in a separate criminal case, claims the traffic stop was illegal and outside the marshals' jurisdiction.
"Under the Nevada Revised Statutes, these are not officers — that is the city marshals — that have unlimited statewide jurisdiction. They're limited only to city property such as parks or city buildings," Myers' attorney Adam Breeden previously told 13 Investigates. "They should not be out there on the highway stopping people for traffic infractions."
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Breeden and Myers filed a federal lawsuit and our exclusive coverage in March garnered more than a million views, sparking public backlash against the city from Myers and others on X.
Fast forward to right now and this new lawsuit, which says Potts violated the First Amendment by unconstitutionally restricting comments. On his @CHIEFJASONPOTTS X account, screenshots show he only allowed comments on his posts to come from the roughly 598 accounts he follows or mentions. The complaint states: "This setting is consciously selected by defendant for each post and appears to be a direct attempt to stop those critical of Chief Potts and the city marshals from commenting."
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With more screenshots, the lawsuit shows Potts used the account for official purposes, like job postings and event announcements, making it a public forum.
The complaint cites Supreme Court cases, noting: "Public officials may not restrict speech in a public forum based on the speaker’s viewpoint."
Chief Potts has since deleted his X account.
When we asked Potts for comment, a City of Las Vegas spokesperson responded, saying, "This was just filed today, and the City Attorney’s Office is reviewing the filing."
Also, some new action this week in the original lawsuit. In seeking formal certification as a class action from the federal court, Myers is offering evidence that the city marshals continue to overstep their jurisdictional bounds by doing traffic stops in the Cities of Henderson and North Las Vegas.
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