Nevada Republican gubernatorial nominee Sheriff Joe Lombardo blasted Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) over his “anti-cop rhetoric” after the governor implied Lombardo is not doing his job as sheriff.
“Do your job,” Sisolak tweeted at Lombardo in response to a post about Las Vegas’s crime problem.
.@JoeLombardoNV, do your job. https://t.co/6rcvPsCnBZ
— Steve Sisolak (@SteveSisolak) August 6, 2022
Lombardo, the Clark County Sheriff, blasted Sisolak for his “despicable” rhetoric. He tweeted:
Your anti-cop rhetoric is despicable. My officers put their lives on the line for the people of Las Vegas and Clark County every single day. It’s sick that you have the audacity to attack us, when you’re the one who has forced your radical soft-on-crime agenda on Nevadans.
John Abel, director of governmental affairs for the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, also criticized Sisolak for his remarks.
“@SteveSisolak implying the Sheriff isn’t doing his job also implies cops aren’t doing their jobs. This is absolutely the furthest from the truth. Maybe you should verify facts before you send this despicable tweet,” Abel tweeted.
@SteveSisolak implying the Sheriff isn’t doing his job also implies cops aren’t doing their jobs. This is absolutely the furthest from the truth. Maybe you should verify facts before you send this despicable tweet. https://t.co/UPg6pPSkJm
— John Abel (@JAbel_Lvppa) August 6, 2022
Lombardo also pointed out that Sisolak enacted policies that give lower penalties for certain criminals.
“You raised the felony threshold. You make my officers issue citations instead of arrests. You lowered penalties for fentanyl and drug dealers. You took away harsher penalties for career criminals,” Lombardo tweeted. “You did that, Steve. And you left Nevada law enforcement to clean up your mess.”
You raised the felony threshold. You make my officers issue citations instead of arrests. You lowered penalties for fentanyl and drug dealers. You took away harsher penalties for career criminals.
You did that, Steve.
And you left Nevada law enforcement to clean up your mess.
— Joe Lombardo (@JoeLombardoNV) August 6, 2022
Lombardo pointed out several examples of the governor’s soft-on-crime policies when speaking more in-depth about his criticism of Sisolak.
Lombardo told the Nevada Globe:
The statutes in AB 236 associated with sentencing and penalties related to narcotics trafficking, burglary, and larceny. The legislative body reduced felonies to misdemeanors and this has made it very difficult to make an arrest in that space. The legislature tied our hands in our ability to make an arrest in a violation of criminal law. In my opinion, it is very frustrating for us to respond to a call from a person in need and we can’t do anything about it or have an individual held responsible for the actions they conducted in a criminal space.
The Republican gubernatorial hopeful also pointed to the increased threshold on larceny as another example of Sisolak’s soft-on-crime policies.
“The threshold on larceny was raised from, I believe, $850 to $1200. You hear people opining about the threshold in CA of $950 and businesses are being put out of business as a result of that action. But here in Nevada, it’s even worse,” Lombardo said.
“People are very frustrated and looking for help, but the most we can do is issue a citation. We don’t have the ability to make an arrest in this space. And when crooks see this, and their communication network starts, crime rises,” he continued.
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/08/06/sheriff-joe-lombardo-blasts-nevada-gov-steve-sisolak-over-anti-cop-rhetoric/