Settelmeyer camp says he was 'exonerated' in domestic violence case, questions record leak

A decades-old domestic violence allegation against 2nd Congressional District candidate James Settelmeyer has surfaced in the bitter GOP primary for Nevada's only open House seat, drawing attention from far-right commentators and appearing in at least one super PAC ad.

But how sealed 2005 court documents were published by a little-known blog have prompted strong pushback from Settelmeyer's campaign, accusations of illicit leaks and an investigation by the Douglas County district attorney.

The allegation, reported in the conservative outlet The Populist Sentinel, is that Settelmeyer, a former state senator from Minden, was charged with "battery constituting domestic violence" against his then-wife in 2005 and taken into custody overnight. 

Court records documenting the arrest, which The Populist Sentinel published in the story, include seemingly contradictory language about the outcome of the case, though they ultimately show Settelmeyer was found not guilty.

Asked for comment last Tuesday, the Settelmeyer campaign — which had not previously addressed the matter — provided a lengthy statement to The Nevada Independent. 

"James Settelmeyer was exonerated of these false allegations 21 years ago," the campaign wrote. "Any attempt to imply otherwise is false and misleading. James and his wife remained married for 16 years. During that time, she received counseling for addiction, and the two ultimately divorced."

Douglas County District Attorney Mark Jackson, who was a county deputy district attorney at the time of the arrest and was elected to his current post the following year, told The Nevada Independent he remembers the 2005 incident and confirmed Settelmeyer was found not guilty. 

"The judge used the word 'exonerated,'" Jackson said in an interview.

The court records, which include the allegation that Settelmeyer "did grab and/or push" his then-wife and indicate that a "no contact" order was issued, include one line that raised questions about the outcome of the case. The judgment form includes text that reads, "YOU AND EACH OF YOU are hereby notified that the defendant pled guilty, no contest to, or was found guilty of:" and below that, written by hand "Battery const. domestic violence, misd." 

But the very next section states, "Defendant found not guilty at trial. (Bail exonerated.)"

Jackson clarified that Settelmeyer pled "not guilty" and that the confusing language on the form was due to the directive the judge would give court clerks back in 2005. 

"The judge would just have the clerks use that form and they would write on those blank lines, but it fell underneath that part about 'the defendant pled guilty, no contest, or was found guilty of:' and they would forget to strike that out," he said. "What they should have done is crossed out what was on that form."

How did the arrest become public?

The Settelmeyer campaign's statement went beyond denying the charges, accusing the campaign of his top opponent, retired Lt. Col. David Flippo (R), of obtaining and disseminating sealed court records.

Jackson confirmed that the court ordered all records on the incident to be sealed in accordance with Nevada law. He added that the records were indeed sealed in 2005, and are "deemed by law never to have occurred." Unlawful access of a sealed record, he said, is a violation of a court order.

The Nevada Independent asked the East Fork Justice Court about the possibility of independently accessing the records published by The Populist Sentinel. The court said that closed cases older than seven years are destroyed per Nevada retention law. Still, the records could continue to exist in private hands.

Rebecca Edwards, court administrator for the 9th Judicial District Court of Nevada, wrote in an email that she had found nothing in their system associated with Settelmeyer's name.

So how did details about the decades-old incident become public? Settelmeyer's team has a theory.

"We have received direct information regarding how sealed court records connected to this matter were obtained and circulated," the Settelmeyer campaign wrote. "We understand that these materials moved from a private individual to the spouse of a Douglas County Commissioner, then to a family member working with the political firm retained by David Flippo's campaign. We further understand that the owner of that firm shared these sealed records with individuals across the state." 

Amy Tarkanian, the wife of Douglas County Commissioner Danny Tarkanian and a longtime Republican activist, is friends with Settelmeyer's ex-wife and has a relative, Alex Tarkanian, who works at the firm running Flippo's campaign, Revolutionizing Microtargeted Campaigns (RMC). 

Asked for comment, Alex Tarkanian wrote in a LinkedIn message to The Nevada Independent, "I have never seen those alleged documents." He added that he was not involved in transmitting them. Amy Tarkanian did not respond to The Nevada Independent's requests for comment.

Over the weekend, she commented on a Nevada GOP social media post supporting Flippo, writing, "I moved [Settelmeyer's] ex wife out of the house. I choose wisely." 

A source unaffiliated with the campaigns, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said they had separately heard about a similar release of records to the one Settelmeyer's campaign described. The same source confirmed that RMC founder Rory McShane, Flippo's campaign manager, was in possession of the court documents before they were publicly reported. 

McShane did not directly answer a question about whether he had the records before they were published, but said he did not send them to the news outlet and highlighted the lack of explicit proof for the Settelmeyer campaign's claims.

"It's easy for our opponent to make allegations without any evidence," he told The Nevada Independent, adding, "I have evidence that Mr. Settelmeyer's consultant was the one who framed Roger Rabbit — but of course I can't provide that evidence to you."

The Settelmeyer campaign also said it had received information "that multiple campaigns were approached and offered the opportunity to purchase the records." In March, another candidate in the 2nd Congressional District race told The Nevada Independent that they had declined the opportunity to buy damaging personal information about Settelmeyer.

After the information was ultimately published, prominent right-wing influencers Laura Loomer and Red Eagle Politics began amplifying it on X. The Populist Sentinel, the outlet that broke the news, has little online presence and provides no information about who owns it. The site registered its domain name in September of last year. American Honor Fund, a super PAC supporting Flippo, cites The Populist Sentinel's piece in a video sent to voters by text this week.

The Settelmeyer campaign told The Nevada Independent that the Douglas County District Attorney's Office is reviewing how the records were obtained and who gave them to online outlets. The campaign also said that specific evidence and communications have been referred to the district attorney's office and that Settelmeyer has lawyered up. 

"This goes far beyond politics," the Settelmeyer campaign wrote. "The possible acquisition, sale, and dissemination of sealed court records is a serious legal matter and should concern every Nevadan, regardless of political affiliation."

Jackson, the district attorney, confirmed the inquiry, writing in an email, "My office is making inquiries as to whether any person accessed any of the sealed records in violation of the court order."