Judge orders change of venue in Darren Mack case to Las Vegas
The story goes like this:
June 12, 2006, Darren Mack allegedly stabs his estranged wife, Charla Mack, to death in their townhouse in Reno. Later that day, the judge handling their divorce case, Chuck Weller, is shot sniper-style while he was in his chambers.
Mack, a wealth pawn shop owner, was named a suspect.
He was on the lam for 10 days before surrendering to Mexican authorities in Puerto Vallarta.
District Judge Douglas Herndon was assigned the case when all Washoe County judges were disqualified. Also assigned to the case were Christopher Lalli and Robert Daskas, both from the Clark County district attorney’s office. Washoe County DA Richard Gammick recused himself because of a long standing personal relationship with Mack.
Herndon ordered a change of venue to Las Vegas, where potential jurors were less likely to be familiar with the case.
When Mack’s defense team filed its motion to change venue, it submitted 144 newspaper articles and 242 television stories about the case.
Herndon based his decision on the larger pool of potential jurors in Las Vegas, one million versus the 100,000 in Washoe County. The judge noted that a larger juror pool was needed since the case has been widely publicized.
Jury selection is scheduled to begin in Las Vegas, October 15.
