Jury begins deliberation in murder trial over Las Vegas reporter's killing

LAS VEGAS — Jurors began deliberations Monday afternoon in the murder trial of former Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles, accused of killing Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative reporter Jeff German.

After about three hours of closing arguments, the jury ate lunch and officially began deliberating at 1:49 p.m., a District Court spokeswoman said.

Telles is accused of murder with a deadly weapon against a person 60 or older. Prosecutors have asked the jury to find Telles guilty of first-degree murder. Prosecutors have accused Telles of killing German over articles the journalist wrote about Telles’ conduct as the Clark County public administrator.

At the end of Chief Deputy District Attorney Christopher Hamner’s closing arguments, he played a video clip from an interview Telles gave German.

“People cannot just get to do whatever they want,” Telles said in the interview.

“For once, the state of Nevada is in agreement with Mr. Telles: he doesn’t get to do whatever he wants,” Hamner told the jury.

Prosecutors have accused Telles of “lying in wait” for German outside the reporters home on Sept. 2, 2022, while wearing a large straw hat and an orange reflective vest. Neighborhood video surveillance captured a distant image of the assailant confronting German on the side of the journalist’s house.

The state’s evidence against Telles included his own DNA found underneath German’s fingernails, plus surveillance footage and items found at his home matching the assailant’s clothing. Detectives have testified that Telles’ phone contained downloaded Google maps images of German’s house, and his work computer contained information on German’s car and address.

In his closing arguments, Hamner picked apart Telles’ assertion that he was framed for German’s killing. Hamner questioned why so many people wanted to kill a journalist and frame Telles, when Telles was a lame-duck politician after losing a primary election.

When it came to Telles’ testimony over the course of three days, Hamner asked jurors to consider Telles’ behavior and facial expressions when he was shown evidence. Telles was seen shaking his head back and forth during prosecutors’ arguments on Monday.

Hamner said Telles spent his time testifying by attempting to “regale” jurors with tales of his accomplishments as public administrator. And Telles admitted to lying in an interview with German, when he told the journalist he was not having an affair with a staffer.

At one point, Hamner said Telles might have been the state’s “best witness.”

“Think about what his fears, motives, interests or feeling are, and the reasonableness of his statements,” Hamner said.

Hamner said that the explanations Telles provided gives jurors “a window into what’s in his mind.”

“That is how important Mr. Telles’ views himself,” Hamner said. “That every single one of these people, every single one of these entities, were literally willing to kill another human being who is not him, just to frame him.”

Prosecutors have asked the jury to determine that the killing was premeditated. Hamner argued that Telles was careful, deleting images and turning off his location services, but that he left “digital breadcrumbs” and evidence on his devices.

Telles’ defense attorney, Robert Draskovich, has tried to paint a picture of Telles as a public official who was trying to expose corruption within the public administrator’s office. He emphasized in closing arguments that the jury needs proof beyond a reasonable doubt to convict Telles.

He told jurors to consider what evidence is lacking: including that Telles’ blood was not at the crime scene, German’s blood wasn’t on any items in Telles’ home, and the murder weapon was never found.

As Draskovich paced the courtroom, he repeated arguments that Metropolitan Police Department detective Derek Jappe “inserted” himself into the homicide investigation, telling the lead homicide detective that Telles had motive to kill German.

He also attacked surveillance footage presented by officials as the assailant’s vehicle, driving through German’s neighborhood before the killing. Draskovich zoomed in on two of the videos, showing the jury a dark silhouette of the driver.

Draskovich argued it appeared that the driver had hair.

“Does that profile match the profile in that vehicle?” Draskovich asked, gesturing towards Telles. “I mean it’s no secret, the man’s bald.”

Like prosecutors, Draskovich presented a slideshow to the jury. The last slide read: “Robert Telles is NOT GUILTY.”

Draskovich asked jurors to consider all the evidence when prosecutors made their closing argument.

“I’m going to ask you, with your open minds and your attentiveness, to address those concerns and at the close of this process, you find Mr. Telles not guilty,” Draskovich said.

Testimony concluded on Friday, after prosecutors called 28 witnesses and Draskovich called six witnesses, including Telles himself. Telles gave a narrative testimony to the jury, without being interrupted by his attorney, before facing questions from prosecutors.

Telles testified he was looking into independent administrators in probate cases regarding property of people who died in Clark County. He alleged that the homes were being flipped for profit, without benefiting the families of the deceased, and that he was “fighting” Compass Realty & Management over the sales.

“Somebody framed me for this, and I believe it’s Compass Realty,” Telles said. “And I believe it’s for the work that I’ve done against them.”

The company has called his accusation “unconscionable and irresponsible.”

Jappe testified last week that he investigated both the kickback scheme reported by Telles, and accusations that Telles himself was receiving kickbacks.

The detective said he found no evidence that Telles received kickbacks, and the Clark County district attorney’s office determined there was not enough evidence for a prosecution in the alleged scheme Telles reported.

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