If you watch the longest-running TV drama in U.S. history, you are acquainted with New York Special Victims Unit Capt. Olivia Benson. We had somebody that good in these parts for 16 years but her employers — us — destroyed her.
Stingy low-tax Nevada is a leader in screwing over our first responders. In October, I related the story of disabled Washoe Sheriff’s Deputy Kim Frankel, a 16-year officer who became the Olivia Benson of Reno-Sparks.
She was very good at sex crimes investigation but was horribly injured in the line of duty and permanently disabled. Some drunk crashed into her cruiser.
The privatized and Orwellianly named “workers compensation” system made her condition worse and permanent because Washoe County refused to pay for her medical care. Why pay when you can throw someone away?
“Insurance” becomes a scam when workers are not compensated.
Detective Frankel is one of many victims of legislative intrigue.
Anything to keep business taxes low. When the Nevada State Industrial
Insurance System was privatized in 1993, making a few guys rich, some lobbyist prevailed upon a lawmaker to remove the “bad faith” clause from the law. Without being able to allege bad faith by her employer, in this case Washoe County, Deputy Frankel has no legal recourse. She and her husband lost their home and moved to Oregon to live with relatives.
I am reliably informed that Sheriff Darin Baalam never even called, let alone go to bat for one of his people to get her the care she needed.
The treatment delay made her permanently spastic, unable to hold a fork.
Just speaking is a hard chore. She has no hope of a cure now and is making it her mission to fix Nevada law.
Hers is not the only case. A North Las Vegas officer has been unable to get care for his heart/lung condition. The same damnable third-party insurance administrator that destroyed Deputy Frankel holds the NLV contract and is apparently just waiting for Lt. Wil Crespo to die.
Assemblymember Jill Dickman, R-Sparks, has submitted a bill draft request to fix the law next year. Sen. Skip Daly, D-Sparks, will co-sponsor the bill in the upper house.
Alas, if help ever arrives, the damage to these officers and countless others will already be irreparable.
Stay tuned.
MEMORIES OF MILLS. Former Washoe County District Attorney and Judge Mills Lane, 85, died in Reno on Dec. 6. He did my show in what was perhaps his last TV appearance in 2002. Just a couple of months later, he was permanently disabled by a stroke.
He had the misfortune of being stricken while home alone and was not discovered until the next day. By then, irreparable harm was done and he could barely speak for the rest of his life.
Anyone who’s lived here awhile has a Mills story. Herewith, a few of mine.
EX-CONFIDENCE. Catching a local taxi, a northern Nevada visitor opened a newspaper and asked the cabbie about this guy Lane who had just gotten a nationally syndicated TV show.
“Do you know him?” asked the traveler.
“Yep,” said the cabbie. “He sent me up on robbery charges years ago.
I’ve voted for him at every election.”
TRIBUNE SUBSCRIPTION, THE HARD (TIME) WAY. Mills subscribed to the Tribune because he was a Barbwire fan. That’s not hype. The straight shooter told me so.
“You stick your chin out there every week and call ‘em like you see ‘em,” he said.
One day, the D.A. came to the old Tribune building at 10th & “C” Streets downtown to renew his subscription and paid with a credit card. Alas, a new employee stole his info and used it not long thereafter. Big, big mistake. That poor lout’s probably still in prison someplace.
KID STUFF. My Number Four Son had just turned 18 and was not at all enthusiastic about showing up to vote. My wife knew how to handle him.
She had introduced him to Mills at a show we did (see below) and he sat with us after our act. The kid became a Mills fan that night.
“You’d feel bad if Mills Lane lost by one vote, wouldn’t you?” mom asked.
He couldn’t wait to vote and has never missed an election since.
READY FOR PRIME TIME. Several years before Mills resigned his Washoe District Court seat to become the star of the nationally syndicated “Judge Mills Lane” TV show, my wife, Betty, provided him with show biz experience.
A realtor, she was on the committee for the annual Reno-Sparks Association of Realtors fundraiser, a charity benefit stage show at the former Flamingo Hilton Hotel-Casino downtown. She called Mills and asked if he’d help. He asked for a script so he’d know what he was getting into, so I wrote a skit with my talk radio show as the setting.
Some of it never saw the light of day. We got censored by the real estate gods when Betty did a spoof commercial for “Assist to Sue,” a combination personal injury law firm and real estate broker.
“When we’re done, you won’t have to worry about your house anymore because you won’t have one,” the skit read in part. “We’ll take care of everything and you’ll see what we mean by broker.”
The stuff we were allowed to do got a lot of laughs and Mills got the biggest ovation from the packed showroom, of course.
A few days later, Mills’ secretary called Betty. Her boss was astounded by the thank-you card she sent — accompanied by two dozen flowers.
In all his years, apparently no one had ever before sent the D.A. a big bouquet.
That was my Betty. That was Mills Lane.
Happy High Holly Days to you and yours.
Stay safe and pray for Ukraine and 53 other currently war-torn lands.
Be well. Raise hell. / Esté bien. Haga infierno.
Andrew Quarantino Barbano is a 54-year Nevadan and editor of NevadaLabor.com. Barbwire by Barbano has originated in the Tribune since 1988. E-mail barbano@frontpage.reno.nv.us
