Felony Burglary Cases Heard in Tenth Judicial District Court

By Leanna Lehman -- Judge Jim Shirley, Eleventh Judicial District Judge, recently presided over four Tenth Judicial District Court hearings related to various felony burglaries in Churchill County. Priscilla Baker, Deputy District Attorney was present on behalf of the State of Nevada. Peter Smith, Esq. of the Charles B. Woodman Law Offices in Reno, appeared in his capacity as Public Defender for all four defendants. Ethan Joseph Fairfield was arraigned for the robbery of the Taylor Mini-Mart store at 301 N. Taylor Street in Fallon at gunpoint last April. Fairfield stated in court that he pointed a 9mm handgun at the proprietor and demanded money from the register. Later arrested, Fairfield pled to robbery, a class D felony and assault with a deadly firearm, a class B felony. Each charge carries a 2-15-year sentence. Fairfield will remain in custody until his sentencing hearing scheduled for June 20th. Nicholas Thomas Mason was arraigned on three counts of Attempt to Commit Burglary on May 29th and 30th of last year.  One incident was interrupted by Rick Capucci when he caught Mason attempting to burgle his daughter’s home and family property on Sheckler Road. According to Capucci, two other individuals aided Mason in the attempted theft, one male and one female. Despite Capucci’s arrival during the theft, the suspects managed to escape and pawn some items from the property. Mason also attempted to commit burglary at two other local properties; a business and private residence. Mason, a high school graduate with some college and military background, entered guilty pleas on all three counts. Each offense carries fines up to $10K and 2-15-year sentences. A sentencing hearing will be held on June 20th. Mason will remain in custody until sentencing. William Jacob Martin was arraigned on two burglary charges. Martin will be sentenced on June 20th. Martin is currently serving time in Northern Nevada Correctional Center on unrelated charges and will be transported back to District Court for sentencing. Arlo Neal Brady was charged with being under the influence of a controlled substance and attempting to sell stolen property under false pretenses. Brady entered a guilty plea on both charges. Smith argued for substance abuse intervention on behalf of Brady stating, “this was clearly drug-seeking behavior.” The court entered a Judgment of Conviction that placed the defendant on probation that included a condition to attend the Western Regional Drug Court. The defendant was informed that he may be required to attend a drug treatment facility if the Western Regional Drug Court deemed it appropriate. While Brady stated to the court, he did not know the item he was trying to sell was stolen property, he did know what he was doing when he attempted to pawn the item at Premier Pawnbrokers as his own property. A victim impact statement was given by Julian Gusset, the owner of the items in question. Gusset stated that “The stolen tools were behind a fence and locked gates. At nearly 70, I’ve never felt the security of my own home was in jeopardy.”   Never miss a meeting or community event – keep an eye on the community calendar at https://www.thefallonpost.org/events/ If you like what we’re doing, please support our effort to provide local, independent news and contribute to The Fallon Post, your online news source for all things Fallon.