Clark County, Nevada Public Defender Commits Horrific Violations of the 6th Amendment

How many times, in recent years, have you heard of a person being criminally charged, prosecuted, and jailed for a crime that eventually they were found not to have committed. Even if you answered only once, that single person is just one too many. It happens more often than you can imagine. In fact, it is becoming a pandemic.

Since March 2000, my best friend Steven Crain, a poor Hispanic, became a victim and example of an innocent man who was rail-roaded, incarcerated for 6 years in the Nevada state prison, and is currently out on parole and probation because of the vindictive, retaliatory, drug user, drug dealer and drug trafficker 

called Regina Hyman. All this in retaliation because my friend Steven would not babysit for his neighbor Regina Yman’s kids for free. Angered by that, Regina filed false charges against Steven, claiming that he had allegedly attempted lewdness with her youngest daughter, LaGina Hyman.

There was never any evidence, just malicious retaliatory hearsay, and even that was filled with so many lies. Regina Hyman admitted in court transcripts that she has a history of making these types of accusations, both in Nevada and California, claiming that different men have sexually assaulted her other daughters. Even Regina Hyman admits that her daughter LaGina never really told her (Regina) what happened. How could LaGina tell her mother, Regina, what happened, when nothing happened. It also must be noted that Regina waited three days after her daughter LaGina told Regina the lies before filing her perjured police report containing false aligations against Steven Crain.

Regina had incentive to knowingly file false charges against Steven and to knowingly commit perjury on the witness stand. One incentive was Regina received immunity from her multitude of drug usage, drug possession and drug dealing charges, given to Regina by the Clark County District Attorney’s office. The second incentive was Regina was paid to do this by the District Attorney. The Clark County District Attorney’s Office has never denied giving Regina immunity and paying Regina Hyman for her testimony.

A 1991 – 1992 San Diego Grand Jury was assigned to investigate the issues of child sexual abuse, assault, and molestation. Said Grand Jury heard from psychological experts testifying that children lie about these issues, and how studies also indicate young children can be very easily contaminated, led by questions  to believe that things happened which in fact did not occur.

The Grand Jury also examined cases where children made allegation of abuse and then later wanted to retract them. The children said they had lied and were sorry. These kids did this to get out of the trouble they believed they were going to be in. If these kids were late coming home or broke their curfew, these kids/teens would lie and say they were sexually assaulted, when the truth was these kids/teens were attending a party or over at a friend’s house, or out at a club, etc.

The same social workers, therapists, prosecutors and judicial officers who believed the stories of abuse, refused to believe the children when they admitted to a lie. This disturbed the said Grand Jury, since they (Grand Jury) knew the refusal to believe from these said prosecutors, therapists, etc., would cause more innocent people to be convicted of sex crimes the accused did not commit.

In my best friend’s Steven’s case that is exactly what happened. LaGina lied and the Clark County District Attorney, the Las Vegas Police, psychological therapists John Pacult, Diane Williams and Alyson Shainker (RedRock Psychology Health Center), Nevada Parole and Probation Officers Shelley Carreo and Michael VanDyke, the Clark County Public Defender (especially Robert Amundson), and the District Court Judges involved all refused to believe that LaGina had lied.

In many of those cases, examined by that San Diego Grand Jury, those persons who were convicted on false testimony often spent years in jail, some even sentenced to death row, for a sex crime that they did not commit. Some of those wrongly convicted even attempted (unsuccessfully or successfully) suicide. These falsely accused and wrongly convicted individuals also had their lives turned upside down, with marriages ending in divorce, some being ostracized by their families, friends and colleagues, along with having the stigma and be labeled as, even if it may be because of a false accusation, a sex offender. All in the name of injustice done to these later found to be innocent people.

At the time of the accusations, Steven and Regina were just neighbors, living in Las Vegas. I have seen the abundance of proof that financially challenged (poor) Hispanic Steven is innocent, and read the 187 pages of transcripts from his Clark County District Court Case 00-C-166673-C which definitely proves his innocence. I can show a multitude of specifics regarding this proof in the transcripts.

I will show, and name names of the government officials from the offices of the former Clark County District Attorneys Stewart Bell and David Roger, current Clark County District Attorney Steven Wolfson, Clark County Deputy District Attorney Mary Kay Holthus, Clark County Public Defender Robert Amundson, Las Vegas Police Department, Las Vegas Police Detectives Jon Scott and Kevin Morgenstern, Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez-Masto, current Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, Nevada Parole and Probation Officers Shelley Carreo and Officer Michael VanDyke, Clark County District Court Judges Douglas Smith, Sally Loehrer, and Stefany Miley, United States District Court Judges, Therapists (John Pacult, Diane Williams, and Alyson Shainker), Attorneys, etc, who to this day, refuse to admit that they were wrong.

They are all just as guilty as Regina Hyman is of making these false allegations. Worse yet, is that since they never denied it, despite being asked several times if these state and county agencies made a deal (immunity and/or financial) with Regina Hyman to make these accusations against my best friend Steven, these state and county agencies thereby admit the deal.

It also needs to be mentioned that at or around the same time Steven Crain was being represented by Clark County Public Defender Robert Amundson, regarding the criminal case, Robert Admunson was also representing Regina Hyman on her drug charges (which incidentally, according to the police report (Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Temporary Custody Record Event # 000322-2385) (March 22, 2000 at 9:30 p.m.) (Listed as Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 453.337) showed an abundance of proof of drugs, and paraphernalia). Yet somehow the District Attorney decided not to prosecute Regina. This was part of the immunity deal the District Attorney’s office made with Regina in order for Regina to perjure herself with false testimony against Steven. Clark County Public Defender, attorney Robert Amundson acted unethically, and committed legal malpractice against Steven.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Just like LaGina’s criminal mother Regina Hyman, so too is LaGina Hyman. At the age of 18 1/2 years old, LaGina Hyman was arrested on October 22, 2012 for Domestic Aggravated Assault and Battery.

Additionally, it must be known that Public Defender Amundson lied and coerced Steven into taking an Alford Plea. Mr. Amundson told Steven Crain that since the Nevada laws constantly change, that if Steven takes the Alford Plea, Steven will be cleared in 1 to 3 years. That was nearly 15 years ago, and Steven is still on lifetime probation. Had Steven been fully and truthfully informed, and not lied to and/or coerced by Public Defender Amundson, Steven would not have take the Alford Plea. Steven would have gone to trial.

When you look at how the Clark County District Attorney’s office vigilantly went after Steven and how that same said District Attorney’s office refused to criminally charge and prosecute Clark County Family Court Judge Nicholas DelVecchio, for the same accusations and hearsay that Steven was being charged with, you will see quite a difference in the treatment each received. What the District Attorney’s office did was selective prosecution, a form of discrimination.

If Steven Crain had the same attorney as “the King of Pop” Michael Jackson, during Mr. Jackson’s multitude of child molestation charges, would Steven Crain’s charges have been dropped, just like Mr. Jackson’s were? There have been other celebrities that have been accused, and even charged with similar crimes. Their charges also were dropped, and if they were punished, it was a little slap on the wrist.

U. S. District Court Judge Samuel Kent, for seven years, sexually victimized his personal female secretary and another female court employee. Judge Kent will only receive 33 months in prison and will still get paid. Unlike what Steven Crain recieved, Judge Kent will not be subjected to lifetime parole and probation supervision. Judge Kent had proper/effective legal counsel, unlike Steven Crain.

In late 2009, a jury acquitted former Mobile County, Alabama Circuit Judge Herman Thomas, of sexual abuse, attempted sodomy, and assault related to allegations that he brought inmates to his chambers for sex and spankings. The judge insisted that he brought the men to his office to “mentor” them, but prosecutors put forward evidence of semen on the carpet and testimony of numerous former inmates that they had sex with him or allowed him to spank them for lenient treatment. Herman Thomas was represented by proper and effective legal counsel, unlike Steven Crain, who had ineffective legal counsel from Clark County Public Defender Robert Admunson. It must also be remembered that in Steven Crain’s case, year 2000, the Clark County District Attorney had no medical or physical evidence against Steven Crain.

It must also be noted that from 1995 until just recently, Clark County Public Defender Director Philip Kohn admitted publicly and even to news reporters, that the Clark County Public Defender’s office only provides proper legal representation to those who are White Mormons. Steven Crain is a Hispanic Catholic.

One look at two of the many other Clark County specific cases which deal with the same issue, clearly shows that innocent people are being falsely charged, denied proper legal representation, wrongfully prosecuted and ultimately incarcerated. These two Clark County specific cases involve Robert Hernandez Miranda and Lazarus Soto Lusson. Both were represented by the Clark County Public Defender.

The emotional turmoil, the Legal Abuse Syndrome, is something Steven, to this day, suffers from, and the horrific memories of being incarcerated are even more painful to hear about.

Let’s immediately put a stop to those who falsely report crimes. Let’s put a stop to prosecutors, police, along with the parole and probation officers who abuse their authority. Let’s put a stop to the destruction of the lives of those actually innocent individuals are falsely charged and wrongfully prosecuted and incarcerated. For if we do not, then you, me and anyone else in the same situation will have to endure the titanic ship-like, emotional and physical turmoil that Steven and others have been caught up in and continue to endure.

Actually, the innocent Steven Crain, a poor Hispanic man, is currently looking for an attorney to represent/help him to re-open his Petition For Writ of Habeas Corpus case. Please help Steven.

Even to this day, Steven Crain is being horrifically and unjustifiably punished. The continuing harassment, bullying and intimidation by Southern Nevada Parole and Probation Officer Michael VanDyke is in itself a crime being continually commited against Steven, an innocent man.