3 Findings from the opening statements, start of witness testimony in the trial of the murder of the RJ reporter | Courts

On the third day of the murder trial of a man accused of killing Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative reporter Jeff German, attorneys made opening statements and began questioning witnesses.

Former Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles, 47, is on trial for murder with a deadly weapon of a victim 60 years of age or older. Telles is accused of killing German because the journalist had written articles about Telles' conduct as an elected official and allegations of unrest within the county office.

Here are some key takeaways:

Opening statements

Prosecutors began by laying out what they said was “overwhelming” evidence against Telles. Weckerly told jurors that the state would ask them to “hold him accountable for his conduct” until the end of the trial.

“At the end of the day, this case is not about politics, it is not about alleged inappropriate relationships, it is not about who is a good boss or supervisor or about nepotism in the workplace,” Weckerly said. “It is just about murder.”

Draskovich instead focused on Telles as an officer, arguing that he was trying to expose corruption within the bureau and was unfairly targeted by Metropolitan Police Department detectives who, Draskovich said, targeted him as a suspect. Draskovich argued that “loss of a job is not a motive for murder.”

New findings

Prosecutors pointed to several pieces of evidence that were not made public.

In his opening statements, Weckerly said Telles downloaded pictures of German's house onto his work computer and conducted research on German's car.

Assistant District Attorney Christopher Hamner interviewed a former detective about video surveillance. The former detective noted similarities between the suspect's vehicle and the vehicle found in Telles' driveway – images of both showed only tint on the rear windows and a “bright spot” on the windshield.

Neighbours testify

Three of German's neighbors testified they noticed his garage door open the day he was killed. His neighbors across the street, Holly and Roy Bailey, said they closed the door that evening.

Holly Bailey said she sent German emails and texts, but he didn't respond. She and her husband planned to apply for a welfare check for German the next day, but wanted to check on him one more time.

Roy Bailey began to cry as he described finding German's body and had to pause to compose himself.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at [email protected] or 702-383-0240.