Robert Telles, a former public official accused of fatally stabbing Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German, has been permitted to represent himself at trial. However, the judge has warned him that she will not allow him to “treat it as a game”. Telles, a lawyer who has never tried a criminal case before, is accused of stabbing German to death outside the journalist’s home in September 2022, after German authored several articles that detailed the turmoil in Telles’ office. Telles’ license was suspended after his arrest. The first-degree murder trial is expected to start later this year.
During a court hearing on Tuesday, Clark County District Court Judge Michelle Leavitt asked Telles if he understood the risks of representing himself. She reminded him that if he chooses to represent himself and does not get a result that he likes, he cannot blame his representation on appeal. Telles replied that he understood. The judge also emphasized that Telles was facing life without the possibility of parole and warned him that it was not a game.
Telles was on his third hired lawyer before being granted the opportunity to represent himself. A stand-by lawyer may be appointed to his case. Telles’ push to represent himself comes after the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that he had listed five rental properties for sale in Arkansas, which he purchased in 2019. The properties are expected to yield a $200,000 profit from their sale.
Prosecutors allege that Telles’ DNA was found underneath German’s fingernails, and pieces of a straw hat that the killer can be seen wearing in surveillance footage were found in Telles’ home. He claims the evidence was “planted”. Telles has maintained his innocence but has not publicly provided evidence to contradict the prosecutors’ case. In an interview with the AP on February 14, he did not explain where he was on the day of the murder. However, he plans to testify to the jury.
German worked for Vegas newspapers for 44 years and earned a reputation as a tenacious reporter who wrote about organized crime and government corruption.
»Robert Telles is permitted to represent himself at trial«
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