Zoning case heads to 9th Circuit court

Carson City residents Don and Toni Langson will have an appeal to their long-standing dispute against Carson City heard Tuesday by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The court will sit in Reno for the first time in its history.

The Langsons' case is one of three to be heard by the court Tuesday, beginning at 1:30 p.m. in Courtroom 5 of the Federal Building.

The Carson City couple sued the city and its planning officials in 1997 saying the city conspired to deprive them of their rights when officials changed city codes and zoning. The couple charge the move restricted their ability to build a mobile home park on 39 acres of property located west of the Carson City Airport.

In July 1999, U.S. District Court Judge David Hagen dismissed the Langsons' lawsuit against Carson City and 16 of its chief planning officials saying there were not enough facts for a jury to decide the issue in their favor.

Hagen dismissed the lawsuit after the Langsons presented their side of the case to a jury, saying there was not enough evidence for a reasonable jury to decide in their favor.

The Langsons filed a notice in August 1999 that they planned to appeal Hagen's decision to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court.

Also in August 1999, the city asked the courts for the Langsons to pay $34,762 as compensation for filing a frivolous lawsuit against the city. The court's decision on whether the Langsons should pay the bill is on hold until the appeal is resolved.

Glade Hall, attorney for the Langsons, said the appeal to the Ninth Circuit would likely be the last for the couple. The only court left to appeal to would be the U.S. Supreme Court.

"We wouldn't have filed the appeal if we didn't expect to win," Hall said. "We think the judge (Hagen) made errors of fact and law. He's a good judge, but we generally feel he was not well served by whoever did the legal research for him."

Hall said the Langsons want to be able to build the mobile home park on their property, but there are also monetary damages included in the suit.

Hall said each side of the case would have 15 minutes to present their side of the story to the three-judge panel. He said a decision is generally issued six to eight weeks after the case.

Mark Forsberg, Carson City chief deputy district attorney who has worked on the Langson case, was unavailable for comment Thursday.

The case will be heard by Chief Circuit Judge Procter Hug Jr. of Reno, Senior Circuit Judge Melvin Brunetti of Reno and Circuit Judge Mary Schroeder of Phoenix.

Cathy Catterson, clerk of the Ninth Circuit court, said the court was sitting in locations other than San Francisco, Seattle or Pasadena, Calif. to give local attorneys and judges more exposure to the court.

"This is basically a series of sittings around the circuit that the court has decided to just have more contact with the bar of the ninth circuit," she said. "They've been sitting in various settings around the circuit rather than the usual places. So the court has been sitting in various locations. Usually, it's just for one day. They've sat in Billings, Spokane, Boise, Phoenix. They usually have a meeting with the local bar, just to answer questions and talk about the rituals, procedures and practices of the Ninth Circuit."

In addition to Langson v. Carson City, the judges will hear two Southern Nevada cases involving a former security director for the Riverside Casino and a labor-union dispute with the Venetian Casino Resort.

The Ninth Circuit Court is the largest of the 13 federal courts, serving California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Montana, Idaho, Nevada, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. The court has more than 300 judicial officers and 5,000 non-judicial employees.

If you go:

What: U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

When: 1:30 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Courtroom 5, Federal Building, 400 S. Virginia St., Reno