Reno city attorney Karl Hall is up for reelection against opponent John Kadlic, who has previously served in the role as well. Anjeanette Damon is the government watchdog reporter at the Reno Gazette Journal. She sat down with KUNR reporter Stephanie Serrano to break down this race.
Karl Hall is the current Reno city attorney and has been in the position for the past four years. Damon says the position has many responsibilities.
"That position represents the Reno city council, so you see him in all of their city council meetings, he advises on open meeting law and procedure, he warns them if they're coming up against some law they might be breaking."
The city attorney, is also in charge of representing the city in all civil lawsuits and criminal prosecution cases that don’t rise to a felony.
The city of Reno has been under the microscope due to a sexual harassment lawsuit against the former city manager, Andrew Clinger, which dates back to 2016. Karl Hall has been criticized by the way he handled the case.
"Karl Hall, in particular, came under fire by the attorney of the two women who accused him of siding with Andrew Clinger, of providing too much information about the investigations to Andrew Clinger and of not informing the Reno City Council that their city manager was under investigation," Damon explained. "It was an awkward period because the city didn't really have policies and procedures for dealing with the top guy in charge of the city."
Hall is running for reelection against his opponent John Kadlic, who served two terms as Reno city attorney, for a total of eight years, before Hall was elected into office.
“He [Kadlic] says that when he decided not to run for reelection four years ago, he was getting a little older and maybe had some health concerns, but after four years of that, he says, his health is fine and he's eager to get back to work, and he's not a real fan of how Karl Hall has done the job either.”
Election day is November 6. Along with Reno city attorney, voters will also be deciding on a new mayor.
