Changing of the Guard: Judge Tierra Jones Officially Appointed Chief Judge of Eighth Judicial District Court

LAS VEGAS, NV — A significant leadership transition officially went live inside Southern Nevada’s highest regional court system today. Outgoing Chief Judge Jerry Wiese formally passed the leadership torch to incoming Chief Judge Tierra Jones, marking a historic milestone for the state’s judiciary.

With the administrative transition complete, Chief Judge Jones takes command of the state’s largest and busiest judicial district.

A Historic Milestone for Nevada’s Bench

The transition follows a unanimous vote by the Eighth Judicial District Court (EJDC) bench to select Judge Jones for the critical administrative post. Judge Jones makes history today as the first Black female Chief Judge to lead the district court in the State of Nevada, having initially taken the bench in Department 10 in May 2017 following an appointment by then-Governor Brian Sandoval.

Outgoing Chief Judge Jerry Wiese completed his leadership tenure after serving the maximum allowable four years across two consecutive two-year terms. Under the local rules of practice for the Eighth Judicial District, the chief judge retains absolute administrative responsibility for managing the overall operations of the court system, overseeing case flow allocations, implementing regional rules of practice, and managing a heavy criminal case load.

Assembling the New Administrative Leadership Team

Upon taking the helm, Chief Judge Jones immediately finalized the appointment of her administrative management team to oversee the court’s core divisions.

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|    EIGHTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT DIVISION LEADERSHIP |
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|  - Chief Judge: Tierra Jones                          |
|  - Presiding Judge, Civil Division: Tara Clark Newberry|
|  - Presiding Judge, Criminal Division: Carli Kierny   |
|  - Presiding Judge, Family Division: Cynthia Giuliani  |
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Under the newly unsealed administrative framework, Chief Judge Jones reappointed Judge Tara Clark Newberry to continue her tenure overseeing the civil division. Judge Carli Kierny, an active member of the court’s Homicide Team, has been tapped to serve as the new criminal presiding judge, stepping into the vacancy left by Jones. Additionally, veteran jurist Judge Cynthia Giuliani will assume command as the presiding judge over the family division, overseeing sensitive domestic and juvenile caseloads.

The administrative team takes command as the EJDC continues to implement system-wide electronic efficiencies, manage expanding dockets, and enhance public access to the regional justice framework across Clark County.

Source: Eighth Judicial District Court of Nevada Administrative Orders, Clark County Bar Association Judicial Registers.