Clark County Commissioner Justin Jones steps down as vice chair amid legal dispute

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - Clark County Commissioner Justin Jones announced Wednesday he is stepping down as vice chair of the board.

Jones said in a statement the board will move to appoint a new vice chair at an upcoming county commission board meeting.

“By stepping down as Vice Chair, I am hopeful that the ongoing and contested legal disputes in the Gypsum Resources litigation will not distract further from the important work of Clark County and the Board. I remain focused on my work as a Clark County Commissioner and the constituents I have been elected to serve,” Jones said.

What is the Gypsum Resources litigation? It is a lawsuit involving a local property developer looking to build homes near Red Rock Canyon.

Before Jones was elected as a Clark County Commissioner in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, he served as an attorney for the conservation group Save Red Rock in litigation against Gypsum and the County. Jones spoke to FOX5 back in 2017 while fighting on behalf of Save Red Rock.

“The Clark County Commission certainly had the opportunity… to stop the development from going forward, instead they greenlit the proposal to go ahead and build up to 5,000 homes but we are still fighting,” Jones told FOX5.

Jones campaigned on not letting the development happen and is accused of being biased. An exhibit from the lawsuit includes a picture of Jones dressed up as a superhero, the Red Rock guy. The lawsuit says, “Commissioner Jones has acknowledged that Gypsum Resources principal Jim Rhodes in [sic] his arch-nemesis.”

After the 2018 election, then Commission Chair Steve Sisolak announced the Gypsum 2011 concept plan application would again be delayed until January of 2019. Jones participated in a hearing in April 2019 and made a motion to deny Gypsum’s application.

About three hours after the vote against Gypsum, Commissioner Jones deleted all text messages on his personal phone according to federal court documents. A judge sanctioned him ordering he pay Gypsum’s attorney fees.

Copyright 2023 KVVU. All rights reserved.