A jury has found Robert Telles, a former elected official in Clark County, Nevada, guilty of murdering investigative journalist Jeff German. The verdict was reached on Wednesday after the jury began deliberating on Monday. Following the verdict, Telles was sentenced to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after 20 years.
Telles, 47, had pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder with a deadly weapon concerning the fatal stabbing of German in 2022. German was discovered outside his residence with multiple stab wounds. He was well-known in Las Vegas for his investigative work, which had included critical reports on Telles and the Clark County public administrator’s office.
The trial featured testimony from 28 witnesses for the prosecution and six for the defense, concluding on Friday. During his testimony, Telles claimed he was “framed” by various individuals, including coworkers, real estate agents, and police, alleging that the accusations stemmed from his efforts to expose corruption within his office.
“I’m not crazy. I’m not trying to avoid responsibility,” Telles stated, insisting on his innocence. He lost his Democratic primary for reelection shortly after German published stories about him in May 2022, which reported on turmoil and bullying in the Clark County Public Administrator’s office and a personal relationship Telles had with a staff member.
Prosecutor Christopher Hamner argued in closing statements that Telles killed German because he feared the journalist would continue to publish damaging articles. He pointed out that Telles had recently been informed that county officials were going to release text and email correspondences between Telles and the woman involved in the relationship.
While defense attorney Robert Draskovich noted that none of German’s blood or DNA was found on Telles or his property, he acknowledged that Telles’ DNA was discovered under German’s fingernails. Draskovich also presented a piece of evidence showing a silhouette of a person driving a maroon SUV that did not resemble Telles, which he argued was crucial to the case.
During deliberations, jurors sought assistance from a court technician regarding video review procedures and remained in the jury room for an additional hour beyond the usual closing time.
The case garnered national attention, as German was the only journalist killed in the United States in 2022, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, which has documented 17 media workers killed in the U.S. since 1992.