3 running to be Henderson Municipal Court Dept. 1 judge

A private attorney who also serves as a substitute judge and a District Court hearing commissioner are challenging an incumbent Henderson Municipal Court judge who is seeking her first full term.

This year’s primary features Gary Thompson and Catherine Wiersch, who each are looking to unseat Department 1 Judge Alicia Albritton. Before joining the bench, Albritton spent 16 years as Clark County prosecutor. She was appointed to replace her predecessor, Mark Stevens, by the Henderson City Council in 2022.

Municipal Court judges in Nevada serve six-year terms. As opposed to county-run justice courts, municipal courts are operated by cities and handle cases like traffic violations, misdemeanors and violations of city ordinances.

Albritton said municipal court is often the first time much of the public deals with the legal system, meaning it’s important that administrative staff are approachable and that court services are accessible to everyone.

“It will probably in most cases be the first court and, hopefully, the only court that people may have to interact with,” Albritton said of municipal court. “If they (the public) have any questions, talk to them, and perhaps not in legalese. A lot of people speak legalese when they become an attorney.”

Albritton also presides over the Henderson Veterans Treatment Court, a special program for former military service members with post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injuries who’ve been charged with a misdemeanor crime.

Albritton said the specialty court during her time on the bench received a nearly $400,000 federal grant. She added that if she is re-elected, she would continue to seek additional resources to help veterans in the program.

“There are so many things we try to put in place where when they leave our court, we want them to be successful,” Albritton said of the veterans court program. “We want to see them back in our court as a mentor. But we don’t want to see them back as a participant.”

Albritton said limited funding and a lack of resources at the city level would make it difficult to create other court programs in the near future, but she added that Henderson Municipal Court also operates a program for those dealing with substance abuse.

While that program, known as ABC Court, can be useful, Thompson, a civil litigation attorney and judge pro tem for Las Vegas and Henderson municipal courts, said Henderson Municipal Court could reduce recidivism by introducing a new program to deal with mental health issues.

Thompson acknowledged launching a specialty court for those with severe mental health issues like Veterans Treatment Court might be a logistical challenge due to limited funding. But if elected, Thompson added, he’d find ways for Henderson Municipal Court to coordinate with the city’s Crisis Response Team and with local mental health nonprofits to help offenders get help and to stay out of trouble.

“People who are involved in misdemeanor crimes, trespassing or petty larceny, mostly it’s unhoused people who get in trouble around a business or in a park — they have mental health issues, and we don’t have the resources,” said Thompson, who ran unsuccessfully for both Henderson Municipal Court in 2013 and Henderson Justice Court in 2024. “Having them in jail isn’t the place for them. That’s no treatment.”

Thompson said his time serving as a municipal court judge pro tem has inspired his run for office. Thompson is currently the treasurer of the Henderson Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee.

“I knew as soon as I started doing pro tem work with Las Vegas Muni Court, that I really loved the job,” Thompson said. “It is something I’m very passionate about. I’m deeply connected to the city.”

Wiersch, who before starting as a District Court hearing commissioner in November spent more than seven years as a Clark County public defender, also said Henderson Municipal Court should do more to address mental health and behavioral health.

“I can tangibly see the need for mental health services and drug addiction services on paper in front of me,” Wiersch said. “I ultimately decided that one of the best ways I can help is by running for judge.”

As a hearing commissioner, Wiersch said she works to oversee District Court’s mental health, medication-assisted treatment, prison re-entry, civil commitments and other programs. That, she said, gives her unique experience compared to other candidates when it comes to addressing mental health.

“I’m the one that has that experience and that passion to serve in that capacity,” Wiersch said.

For both Albritton and Wiersch, it is their first run for public office.

The candidates will appear on the June 9 primary ballot. Early voting for the primary runs from May 23 until June 5. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, the top two candidates will advance to the Nov. 3 General Election.