‘Stony’ Jackson remembered as skilled lawman, practical joker

While working as a bailiff in Clark County courts for nearly three decades, James "Stony" Jackson Jr. earned a reputation as a practical joker.

"I wish that this was one of your pranks," his daughter Kerrye Jackson-Manson said during his funeral Friday.

The woman, who sobbed throughout her eulogy, jokingly described her father as her "partner in crime." She also praised him for treating people like he wanted to be treated.

"I will always carry you not only in my heart but also in my soul," she concluded, drawing applause.

A diverse crowd filled the 200-capacity room at Palm Northwest Mortuary, 6701 N. Jones Blvd., for the popular bailiff's service. Among those in attendance were several current and former district judges, including one who now sits on the Nevada Supreme Court.

Jackson, considered an institution in the Clark County court community, died Nov. 30 in Las Vegas after a lengthy illness.

Although he had no birth certificate and was unsure of his age, a clergy record prepared for the funeral listed his birth date as March, 19, 1932. That would have made him 79. When he retired in August 2007, he told a Las Vegas Sun reporter he thought he was 68.

Jackson spent his early childhood in an orphanage in Amarillo, Texas. By the time he retired, Jackson had about 50 years of law enforcement experience under his belt.

He made history in Texas as the first African-American deputy sheriff hired in Potter County, which encompasses Amarillo.

Jackson rose through the ranks of the Potter County Sheriff's Department and also started a private detective business in Texas. A chance encounter with legendary gaming figure Benny Binion eventually brought him to Las Vegas.

Jackson said Binion, in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service at the time, told him, "If you ever have any problems, come out to Las Vegas, and I've got a job for you."

Eventually, Jackson took Binion up on the offer, moving to Las Vegas to take a security job at Binion's Horseshoe. Jackson was hired by Earle White Jr., then a justice of the peace, in 1980.

White was a district judge when he conducted the courthouse wedding ceremony for Jackson and his bride, Carolyn, in August 1986. Together the couple raised five daughters.

Jackson joined the staff of District Judge Jeffrey Sobel when he took office in January 1991. After Sobel was defeated 12 years later by Jackie Glass, Jackson worked as her bailiff for two years.

White and Sobel since have died. Las Vegas City Councilman Steve Wolfson attended Jackson's funeral without Glass, his wife, who recently was hired as the new host of the syndicated courtroom show "Swift Justice," which is taped in Hollywood.

Some 20 uniformed bailiffs accompanied Jackson's casket to the nearby grave site, where the Rev. Eugene Lewis from Lion of Judah Full Gospel Baptist Church concluded the service with the words, "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, blessed be the name of the Lord."

Allen Lichtenstein, general counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, was among those who attended the service. He recalled meeting Jackson when he arrived in Las Vegas in 1990 to work as White's law clerk. Lichtenstein, a former college professor, was in the midst of a career change.

"Just being Stony, he made that transition so much easier," Lichtenstein told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Although they only worked together about six months, the attorney remembered seeing Jackson use his intelligence and experience over the years to defuse potentially volatile courtroom situations.

"I think that because Stony was so easy-going and so friendly, people may not have realized how good and skillful he was at doing his job," Lichtenstein said.

Jackson is survived by seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Contact reporter Carri Geer Thevenot at cgeer@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0264.