District attorney employee speaks about Watts investigation at commission meeting

Multiple Eureka County citizens called for Sheriff Jesse Watts resignation during the Board of County Commissioners meeting’s public comment period on Tuesday. The public’s calls earlier this week came after an investigation into Watts accused the sheriff of making false claims against a local resident for allegedly assaulting a former Eurekan in 2019.

 Spencer Investigations, a private investigations company based in Reno, was hired by the district attorney to look into a complaint filed by an Eureka resident against the sheriff for what the resident claimed to be false claims of an alleged sexual assault.

If the investigation report is accurate and Watts did make false claims in an official capacity, he could be facing a misdemeanor charge. If the sheriff named or referred to the likeness of the woman who was allegedly assaulted five years ago, he could also be facing misdemeanor charges, jail time and fines. 

Ashley Kemp, the administrative legal secretary for the Eureka County District Attorney’s office but who spoke on her own accord, was one of the Eureka citizens who asked the county commission to demand Watts’ resignation.

“Outside of his blatant disregard for the rights of the actual victim of crime, the sheriff abused his authority to a young female subordinate employee. His continued inappropriate behavior in the workplace with female employees should be enough to demand his resignation,” Kemp said. 

According to the investigation, the man Watts made allegations against was dating one of Watts’ employees, a female dispatcher. The investigation also reported that Watts had discussed the alleged assault with the employee’s mother when Watts said if he was his employee’s father they would “never find the body” of the person she was dating.

“However, it seems this behavior will continue to be allowed in the workplace, and I’ve yet to hear a formal response from you commissioners,” Kemp said.

Commissioners Marty Plaskett and Rich McKay did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the calls for the sheriff’s resignation. However, last week Plaskett and McKay declined to comment on the investigation because of the fluidity of the situation. 

Watts also failed to respond to a request for comment this week but told The Eureka Sentinel last week “As stated in my statement. Do to potential litigation, I will not be speaking to the press or making any additional statements.”

The statement Watts referenced was posted on Facebook where Watts acknowledged the conversation between him and his employee did happen. He also said he was never interviewed for the investigation. 

“On the Morning of July 2nd, 2024, I was notified of yet another Investigation, launched by the District Attorney … The Investigation is based on a conversation I had with an ECSO [Eureka County Sheriff’s Office] employee,” Watts wrote in the statement. “To have a complete Investigation, you must talk to all involved and get both sides of the story. I was never spoken to in regard to this Investigation, or even notified it was being conducted.”

Below Watts’ Facebook post, commenters called the investigation a “witchhunt” and that “the small town knitting club was at it again.” However, among the people participating in public comment at Tuesday’s meeting, no one spoke in support of Watts.

However, Sean Brown, the father of Watts’ subordinate, did show up to call for Watts’ resignation.

“When my daughter would work at the sheriff’s office, I thought, ‘What better place to keep her safe and taken care of while fulfilling her dream to be in law enforcement?’ I was wrong,” Brown said Jesse knows the way in my daughter’s personal life at work and tried to control her actions the way he saw fit.”

Watts has posted before the investigation came out that the commissioners and Beutel weren’t working with him. But Amy Jensen, the mother of the resident Watts accused of the alleged assault, said the feud between the district attorney and Watts doesn’t matter in this case.

“We all know that the sheriff has his own issues with Eureka County District Attorney, but that is completely irrelevant to this complaint, a member of the public went to the DA to file a complaint against the sheriff, and the Eureka County District Attorney’s office proceeded to do their job,” Jensen said.

Eureka County District Attorney Ted Beutel told The Eureka Sentinel last week several state agencies had been notified of the investigation. 

Ross Armstrong, the executive director of the Nevada Commission on Ethics, said he could not “confirm or deny the filing of any specific complaints regarding Jesse Watts.” According to state law, complaint materials remain confidential until an ethics review panel determines whether or not just and sufficient cause exists to refer the matter.

The Nevada Attorney General’s office could not confirm or deny whether they have an ongoing criminal investigation involving Watts.

Though Beutel has not responded to The Eureka Sentinel’s request for comment about the claimed failure to work with the sheriff, Kemp said Watts’ claims aren’t true.

“The sheriff wants you to believe that the district attorney’s office does not work with his department. I can, with 100 percent certainty tell you that I have a very good working relationship with the majority of local law enforcement,” Kemp said.

“I trust every single one of the law enforcement officers sitting behind me. I respect those individuals of law enforcement who possess the ability to tell the truth even when the truth is hard,” she said.

Updated at 3:32 p.m. on 7/26/2024 to clarify that the Nevada Attorney General’s office cannot confirm or deny whether they have an ongoing criminal investigation involving Watts.