Myron E. Leavitt (October 27, 1930 – January 9, 2004) was an American

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who was the 27th lieutenant governor of Nevada from 1979 to 1983. He was a native of

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, and served in many political positions, including the

Clark County Commission The Clark County Commission is the governmental organization that governs and runs Clark County, Nevada, providing services to the unincorporated areas. Its offices are located at the Clark County Government Center in Downtown Las Vegas. Compos ...

from 1971 to 1974, and the Las Vegas City Council from 1975 to 1978. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Leavitt was born in 1930 in Las Vegas to Myron 'Mike' Leavitt, a county highway department worker, and his wife Estella, a maid. Following graduation from Las Vegas High School in 1948, Myron E. Leavitt won an athletics scholarship to the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and prim ...

. Graduating from UNR with a degree in journalism, Leavitt returned to Vegas, where he worked as sports editor for the

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal' ...

. With the encouragement of his brother, Leavitt entered the

University of Utah College of Law The S.J. Quinney College of Law is a professional graduate law school at the University of Utah. It is located in Salt Lake City, Utah. The law school was originally called the University of Utah College of Law, changing to its current name on No ...

, where he graduated in 1956, eighth in his class. He returned to Las Vegas, where he entered private practice. Leavitt subsequently served as Justice of the Peace, Clark County Commissioner (as had his father), Las Vegas City Commissioner, and ultimately as the state's Lieutenant Governor. Following his term as Lt Governor, then-Governor

Richard Bryan Richard Hudson Bryan (born July 16, 1937) is an American retired politician and attorney who served as the 25th Governor of Nevada from 1983 to 1989 and as a United States Senator representing Nevada from 1989 until 2001. A Democrat, Bryan pr ...

appointed Myron to the

District Court District courts are a category of courts which exists in several nations, some call them "small case court" usually as the lowest level of the hierarchy. These courts generally work under a higher court which exercises control over the lower co ...

in 1984, where Leavitt served until being elected to the

Nevada Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Nevada is the highest state court of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the head of the Nevada Judiciary. The main constitutional function of the Supreme Court is to review appeals made directly from the decisions of the distri ...

in 1998, a position to which he was reelected in 2000, and was holding at the time of his death in 2004. Leavitt had earlier run for the State Supreme Court twice (1988 and 1994) but failed to get elected. He ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1982. As an attorney in private practice for 28 years, Leavitt successfully argued a case that ultimately forced the

Nevada Legislature The Nevada Legislature is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of Nevada, consisting of the Nevada Assembly (lower house with 42 members) and the Nevada Senate (upper house with 21 members). With a total of 63 seats, the Legisla ...

to reapportion itself according to population. He also argued the case that forced the Board of Regents at the

University of Nevada The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded ...

to reapportion itself. The Justice Myron E. Leavitt Middle School in Las Vegas was named in honor of the Supreme Court Justice in March, 2002.Remembering the Life of Justice Myron E. Leavitt"
by the Hon. Judge Michelle Leavitt, ''Nevada Lawyer Magazine'', March, 2004

References

External links

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20060924033903/http://www.nvsupremecourt.us/info/news/index.php?contentID=29 Obituary of Myron Leavitt {{DEFAULTSORT:Leavitt, Myron E. 1930 births 2004 deaths American justices of the peace Latter Day Saints from Nevada Clark County, Nevada commissioners Leavitt family Lieutenant governors of Nevada Nevada Democrats Lawyers from Las Vegas Justices of the Supreme Court of Nevada University of Nevada, Reno alumni S.J. Quinney College of Law alumni 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges 20th-century Nevada politicians