WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court will consider a Nevada case that weighs the right of an elected official to vote on business that comes before him against the state's interest in having an ethical government.
The justices last week agreed to review a Nevada Supreme Court ruling that struck down a part of the state ethics law.
The case involves a vote cast by Michael Carrigan, a member of the city council in Sparks, Nev., near Reno. Carrigan was censured by the Nevada Ethics Commission for voting on a casino project even though his friend and campaign manager worked as a consultant to the project's developer.
The Nevada court said the law was so broad that it violated Carrigan's free speech rights to vote as an elected official.
Published: Tue, Jan 11, 2011
