Message of the Week from Sheriff Pope on September 19, 2025

Every Monday, we post our weekly arrest stats along with a description of the crimes people were arrested for the prior week. This raises questions about those crimes, and in some cases, what they mean. I thought it worthwhile to provide definitions on the most common types of crimes that I receive questions about.

The most interesting crime that receives a lot of comments and questions is the “Intox Pedestrian / Animal Rider on Road”.

This booking code comes from NRS 484B.297. “Walking along and upon highways; solicitation of ride, business or contribution from driver or occupant of vehicle prohibited in certain circumstances; intoxicated pedestrian prohibited within traveled portion of highway; applicability to riders of animals; applicability where sidewalk is obstructed; penalty.”

I have been employed by the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office for over 20 years, and I can tell you, it has never been a person riding an animal in the roadway; it is always just an intoxicated person.

A large percentage of the population confuses Battery and Assault.

In Nevada, the difference between assault and battery is physical contact: assault is an action that creates a reasonable fear of immediate bodily harm, while battery is the actual, willful, and unlawful use of force or violence upon another person. An assault can occur without physical contact (e.g., a threatening gesture), but a battery requires physical contact to occur.

A man was recently arrested for kidnapping and assisting a runaway juvenile. Many people did not understand why the kidnapping charge was added for his part in assisting the juvenile.

This is from the kidnapping statute: (PORTION PERTAINING TO THAT ARREST IS IN CAPITAL LETTERS)

NRS 200.310, Section 2 states, “A person who willfully and without authority of law seizes, inveigles, takes, carries away or kidnaps another person with the intent to keep the person secretly imprisoned within the State, OR FOR THE PURPOSEOF CONVEYING THE PERSON OUT OF STATE WITHOUT AUTHORITY OF LAW, or in any manner held to service or detained against the person’s will, is guilty of kidnapping in the second degree which is a category B felony.”

Finally, harassment is often reported incorrectly to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office. Harassment is often thought of as unwelcome conduct; however, in Nevada, harassment is defined under NRS 200.571 as unlawfully threatening to cause bodily injury, damage property, or cause physical confinement or restraint, and placing the victim in reasonable fear that the threat will be carried out.

I hope this helps you better understand the charges that are presented weekly. I will keep an eye out and offer more explanations in the future.