James C Mahan

Education and career

Born in El Paso, Texas, Mahan received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Charleston in 1965 and a Juris Doctor from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1973. He was in the United States Navy from 1966 to 1969. He was in the United States Navy Reserve from 1970 to 1972. He was in private practice in Nevada from 1973 to 1999. He was a District Judge in the Eighth Judicial District Court for the State of Nevada (which covers Clark County, Nevada) from 1999 to 2002.

District court service

Mahan is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada. Mahan was nominated by President George W. Bush on September 10, 2001, to a new seat created by 114 Stat. 2762. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 25, 2002, and received his commission on January 30, 2002.

Investigation

In 2006, Mahan was investigated by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals after it became known that he had awarded a total of nearly $5 million in court awards and fees to individuals with whom he had personal and business relationships. These individuals included his formal judicial campaign treasurer as well as a former law partner, who was at that time providing free legal services to Mahan's wife and Mahan's judicial assistant. The relationships were uncovered by the Los Angeles Times and were not disclosed by Mahan, who denied wrongdoing.

Nevada same-sex marriage ban

On October 9, 2014, Judge Mahan issued an injunction barring enforcement of Nevada's ban on same-sex marriage. A different judge of the Nevada District Court upheld Nevada's same-sex marriage ban in 2012, but was reversed by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and remanded. The judge recused himself and the case was assigned to Mahan, who promptly issued the injunction.

Attempted assassination of Donald Trump

On June 18, 2016, an attempt was made to assassinate the presumptive Republican nominee for the 2016 United States presidential election, Donald Trump, in the final weeks of the Republican presidential primaries by Michael Steven Sandford.

Sandford was arraigned on July 7, 2016, pleading not guilty. His trial was set for August 22, 2016. On September 13, 2016, Sandford pled guilty in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada to charges of being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and disrupting an official function. Prior to his trial, Sandford had signed a plea agreement that reduced his maximum sentence from 20 years to 27 months. A third charge of being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm was dropped. Sandford apologized for his actions, saying "I know saying sorry is not enough. I really do feel awful about what I did. I wish there was some way to make things better. I have cost taxpayers so much money. I feel terrible." Sandford subsequently claimed to have no memory of the assassination attempt.

Sandford was sentenced on December 13, 2016, receiving 12 months and 1 day's imprisonment. He will be eligible for release from April 2017, at which time he will be deported. The sentencing judge, James C. Mahan, acknowledged Sandford's mental health issues, stating "I don't think you harbored malice in your heart...You have a medical problem...I don't see you as evil or a sociopath". In January 2017, Sandford's mother expressed concerns that President Trump would seek to extend Sandford's sentence, and claimed that Sandford was being harassed by "Trump-supporting guards and inmates".