Robert Telles, 47, appeared downcast and shook his head as he listened to the Clark County jury’s verdict in the case, which has raised concerns about press freedom.
Jeff German, a 69-year-old investigative reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, was found stabbed to death in September 2022. German had reported unfavorably on Telles, including details of an alleged affair and claims of a hostile work environment and favoritism during Telles’ tenure as the county public administrator.
Prosecutors revealed that Telles had hidden in the bushes outside German’s home, waiting for him to return, before fatally stabbing him. Telles was arrested five days later.
Clark County Chief Deputy District Attorney Pamela Weckerly stated, “In the end, this case isn’t about politics. It’s not about alleged inappropriate relationships. It’s not about who’s a good boss or who’s a good supervisor or favoritism at work. It’s just about murder.”
Telles’ defense attorney, Robert Draskovich, argued that police did not consider other possible suspects and noted that Telles had made light of German’s stories online. “These articles were not a motive for a murder,” Draskovich said. “And we all know, killing a journalist does not kill a story.”
Telles maintained his innocence, asserting, “Unequivocally, I am innocent.”
On Wednesday afternoon, August 28, the jury convicted Telles of first-degree murder. He faces a sentence of life imprisonment without parole, life with the possibility of parole after 20 years, or 20 to 50 years in prison.
Following the verdict, Katherine Jacobsen, US, Canada, and Caribbean program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, emphasized that the case “sends an important message that the killing of journalists will not be tolerated.” She added, “It is vital that the murder of journalists be taken seriously and that perpetrators be held accountable.”
