A Man of His Word The Life and Times of Nevada's Senator William J. Raggio

by Archer, Michael

• ISBN13: 9781555716806
• ISBN10: 1555716806
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-05-01
• Publisher: Hellgate Press

Summary

William J. Raggio is perhaps one of Nevada's best known and most admired citizens. During the 1950s and '60s, while serving as district attorney of Washoe County, he successfully fought government corruption and underworld influence in Reno. In 1972, he was elected to the Nevada state legislature where he has served twelve special and nineteen regular sessions, the longest Senate service in Nevada history. From his friendship with Frank Sinatra to his battles against mobster Joe Conforte, his has been a colorful and meaningful life both personally and professionally.

Author Biography

MICHAEL ARCHER grew up in northern California and served as a U.S. Marine in Vietnam during 1967-1968. His books include A Patch of Ground: Khe Sanh Remembered, an acclaimed first-person account of the infamous seventy-seven-day siege of that American combat base; A Man of His Word: The Life and Times of Nevada’s Senator William J. Raggio, about one of Nevada's most courageous, honorable and admired citizens; and The Long Goodbye: Khe Sanh Revisited, chronicling the author’s search for answers to a friend’s mysterious death at Khe Sanh. Michael lives in Reno and, in addition to his writing, is a staff member with the Senate Committee on Finance at the Nevada State Legislature.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
Preface	p. xvi
Foreword	p. xix
Prologue	p. xxii
Avansino	p. 1
The Washoe	p. 3
Ben Raggio	p. 6
Reno	p. 12
Wingfield	p. 19
Cardelli	p. 22
ôLittle Billyö Raggio	p. 26
Formative Years	p. 31
On His Own	p. 39
Learning the Law	p. 47
Ernest Brown	p. 53
Practicing the Law	p. 58
Deputy District Attorney	p. 65
McCarran	p. 72
Prostitution in Nevada	p. 79
District Attorney Raggio	p. 82
Conforte	p. 86
Organized Crime	p. 116
Corruption	p. 129
Thayne Archibald	p. 137
Robert ôSandmanö Williams	p. 143
Joseph Miles Walker	p. 150
Lester Morford, III	p. 155
Reelection	p. 160
Thomas Lee Bean	p. 167
Raggio's Raiders	p. 177
ôEverybody Seemed to Know Himö	p. 183
Ol' Blue Eyes	p. 188
National District Attorneys Association	p. 202
The Political Waters (1964-1968)	p. 211
Jimmy Ing	p. 219
Family	p. 202
U.S. Senate Race (1968)	p. 231
U.S. Senate Race (1970)	p. 235
Private Life (1971-1972)	p. 258
State Senate (1973)	p. 268
Race for Lieutenant Governor (1974)	p. 278
Learning to Make Law (1975-1977)	p. 285
Gaming Lawyer	p. 293
Lobbyists	p. 305
Tax Reform and Sagebrush Rebels (1979)	p. 310
An Old Foe (1981)	p. 316
Plight of the Citizen Legislator (1983)	p. 323
Judge Harry Claiborne Trial(1984)	p. 328
Not One to Hold a Grudge (1985)	p. 343
Majority Floor Leader (1987)	p. 350
Pension Fiasco (1989)	p. 363
The Session from Hell (1991)	p. 378
The American Legislative Exchange Council	p. 393
ôA Fiscally Prudent Approachö (1993)	p. 396
The Purse Strings (1995)	p. 407
Master of the Endgame (1997)	p. 416
Pain and Partisanship (1998-1999)	p. 430
Redistricting: An Opportunity Missed (2001)	p. 442
Caucus Revolt (2003)	p. 453
Good Compromises (2005)	p. 473
An Air of Incivility (2007)	p. 487
Challenge from the Right (2008-2009)	p. 499
The Price of Conscience (2010)	p. 527
Epilogue	p. 548
Acknowledgments	p. 550
Appendices	p. 553
Chapter Notes	p. 579
Sources/Bibliography	p. 601
Index	p. 605
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