FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, March 11, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT:
Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088
STATEMENT by Geoconda Argüello-Kline regarding informant testimony (AB201):
The Culinary Union supports AB201 because it would protect Nevadans against false jailhouse informant testimony, which has led to wrongful convictions and cost the state millions of dollars.
During the 2019 legislative session, we heard the heartbreaking story of DeMarlo Berry, who did 22 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit largely due to false jailhouse informant testimony. Unfortunately, Demarlo is not alone.
Bad jailhouse informant testimony has also played a part in the exonerations of Fred Steese, who served over 20 years for a crime he did not commit. Jailhouse informants played a big role in all of these cases and Nevadans need legislation to ensure this injustice never happens again.
AB201 does just that. Tracking jailhouse informant use and requiring prosecutors to disclose specific details about jailhouse informants, such as the details of any deal they received in exchange for testimony, and any other cases that they may have benefited from testimony, is smart policy. These commonsense fixes will ensure no other Nevadan has years of their lives stolen from them due to wrongful convictions.
Last session, the Assembly Judiciary Committee did the right thing by ensuring exonerated Nevadans were compensated for the time they served due to wrongful convictions. Now, the state must make sure that no other Nevadans have decades of their lives taken from them because of false testimony from jailhouse informants.
This bill will help make that a reality and the Culinary Union urges the Nevada Legislature to pass AB201.
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ABOUT CULINARY UNION:
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of the casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 300,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America.
The Culinary Union, through the Culinary Health Fund, is one of the largest healthcare consumers in the state. The Culinary Health Fund is sponsored by the Culinary Union and Las Vegas-area employers. It provides health insurance coverage for over 145,000 Nevadans, the Culinary Union’s members and their dependents.
The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest Black/AAPI/immigrant organization with members who come from 178 countries and speak over 40 different languages. We are proud to have helped over 18,000 immigrants become American citizens and new voters since 2001 through our affiliate, The Citizenship Project.
The Culinary Union has a diverse membership which is 55% women and 45% immigrants. The demographics of Culinary Union members are approximately: 54% Latinx, 18% white, 15% Asian, 12% Black, and less than 1% Indigenous Peoples.
Culinary Union members work as: Guest room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, laundry and kitchen workers. The Culinary Union has been fighting for working families in Nevada for 86 years.
CulinaryUnion226.org / @Culinary226
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