Longtime federal judge Larry Hicks of Nevada struck and killed by vehicle near Reno courthouse

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Larry Hicks, a federal judge in Nevada for more than 20 years who presided over cases ranging from U.S. environmental disputes to political corruption trials, has died after being struck by a vehicle at an intersection near the federal courthouse in Reno, authorities and his family said. He was 80 years old.

Hicks was pronounced dead at the hospital after the crash Wednesday afternoon. Reno police said the driver cooperated with authorities and impairment did not appear to be a factor.

Hicks was the father of current Washoe County Prosecutor Chris Hicks, whose office released a statement on behalf of the Hicks family.

“Judge Larry Hicks was a deeply admired attorney and judge, a devoted friend, mentor and devoted servant to the administration of justice,” the statement said. “For us, he was above all a man who did not put anything before his family. He was a hero in every way, a loving husband of almost 59 years, a loving father, a doting dad and a brother.

Hicks's two-decade workload has sampled every slice of Nevada life, from conflicts over water rights, wild horses and gold mines to crooked politicians, casino workers, entertainers Las Vegas and championship boxers.

He was appointed to the U.S. District Court in Nevada in 2001 by Republican President George W. Bush and was sworn in shortly after the September 11 attacks. He continued to hear cases after ascending to senior judge status in 2012.

“He was a pillar of the Reno community – a universally respected district attorney, partner in private practice and federal judge,” the Federal Court said in a statement Thursday. “He was a brilliant jurist who embodied honesty, wisdom, courtesy and impeccable integrity.”

Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo said the entire state was in mourning over the death of a man of “unparalleled professional integrity.” Lombardo said in a statement that all flags would be flown at half-mast until sunset Friday.

In one of his most high-profile trials, Hicks sentenced Harvey Whittemore, a Nevada lobbyist and political influencer, to two years in prison in 2013 for illegally contributing to Democratic U.S. Sen. Harry Reid's 2007 campaign.

Sitting in Las Vegas instead of his usual Reno courtroom, Hicks sentenced three former Clark County commissioners to federal prison in 2006 after a sensational trial in a federal political corruption case, dubbed “Operation G-sting », which resulted from bribes paid to elected officials. by the owner of a strip club.

Hicks has heard dozens of challenges from conservationists over federal land management decisions in Nevada, where U.S. government agencies control about four-fifths of the land. He often relied on the expertise of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to approve controversial mining projects and wild horse roundups, but not always.

Last year, he sided with environmentalists and adopted a U.S. appeals court's strict interpretation of a 150-year-old mining law that blocked a metals mine in Nevada. In 2015, he gave horse advocates a rare victory by temporarily blocking a federal roundup of hundreds of mustangs.

Among celebrity cases, Hicks ordered rock star Rod Stewart to pay more than $3 million to a Las Vegas casino in 2006 for failing to return money paid to him before canceling a concert in 2000. In 2012, he ordered boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. to pay about $114,000 to rival fighter Manny Pacquiao's lawyers in a defamation case.

Perhaps more than any other case, the Whittemore affair offered both a behind-the-scenes look at the sometimes cozy political and business relations in a western state like Nevada and the kind of frankness and calmness on the bench that earned him respect for prosecutors and prosecutors. defense attorneys as well.

He suspended the trial at one point, telling lawyers for both sides that he was “conditionally recusing himself” for at least a week so they could decide whether they thought he should continue, in light of various past professional and family relationships. he revealed during a 40-minute hearing.

Hicks said he has known Whittemore casually for probably more than 20 years. The judge said that rather than putting one of the attorneys in the “embarrassing” position of having to file a motion to dismiss Hicks from the case, his recusal would become permanent if his clerk did not receive confidential letters from each side stating that they wanted to renounce the challenge of the judge. Both sides did so and praised the way Hicks handled the matter.

Hicks was born in Evanston, Illinois; graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno and the University of Colorado Law School; and became a prosecutor in Reno in 1968. He was elected Washoe County prosecutor in 1975 and served until 1979, when he joined a major Nevada law firm, according to the state bar of Nevada. He received the association's Presidential Prize in 2020.

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An earlier version was corrected to show that Hicks assumed senior status in 2012, not 2013, and was elected Washoe County prosecutor in 1975 and served until 1979, instead of serving from 1974 to 1978.

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Associated Press writers Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Sarah Brumfield in Silver Springs, Maryland, contributed to this report.