Michele Fiore pardoned by Trump after defrauding donors

President Donald Trump has granted “a full and unconditional pardon” to Michele Fiore, the former Las Vegas councilwoman found guilty of defrauding donors who believed they were giving money for a statue to honor a fallen Las Vegas police officer.

“Today, I stand before you — not just as a free woman, but as a vindicated soul whose prayers were heard, whose faith held firm, and whose truth could not be buried by injustice,” Fiore said in a text message statement to the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Thursday.

Fiore was found guilty of conspiracy and wire fraud charges by a federal jury in October. Federal prosecutors accused Fiore of raising tens of thousands of dollars through a charity and political action committee for a statue honoring Metropolitan Police Department officer Alyn Beck, who was shot and killed with his partner in 2014.

Prosecutors said Fiore spent the donations on rent, plastic surgery and payments on her daughter’s wedding. On Thursday, Fiore’s defense attorneys filed a motion to vacate her May 14 sentencing and included a copy of Wednesday’s order from Trump pardoning Fiore.

‘Blatant disregard’

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford slammed the pardon in a statement.

“Donald Trump’s blatant disregard for law enforcement is sickening, and pardoning someone who stole from a police memorial fund is a disgrace,” Ford said. “As Nevada’s top cop, I believe there’s no room for reprieve when it comes to betraying the families of fallen officers. I will continue to stand with our men and women in uniform.”

Other politicians were similarly critical.

“Donald Trump is spitting in the face of law enforcement. Again,” said U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., in a statement on social media platform X.

State Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro, D-Las Vegas, said on X: “Michele Fiore abused her position to defraud Nevadans and our law enforcement community. Pardoning her solely as a reward for political loyalty is yet another embarrassing mockery of justice and the rule of law.”

Fiore is a longtime Trump supporter. At a City Council meeting in January 2021, she said, “History will remember President Trump as our greatest, as one of our greatest presidents.”

Gov. Joe Lombardo’s office declined to comment on the pardon. He was among the donors Fiore was accused of bilking and testified at her trial.

Beck’s widow, Nicole Beck, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Ashton Packe, a retired Metro detective sergeant, said he went through the police academy with Beck in 2001 and became his friend. About 20 years ago, the two officers were partners in the southeast area command, he said.

He described Beck as “a phenomenal human being,” a kind, fair, level-headed officer and a great family man.

Packe said he assisted the FBI minimally with surveillance of Fiore during its public corruption case against her. He described Fiore as a “grifter” who engaged in “disgusting behavior.”

Like Cannizzaro, he said he thinks her pardon seemed like a quid pro quo situation.

“She was never really punished for the crime,” he said. “That sends a horrible message if you’re an elected official who engages in public corruption.”

Return to the bench?

Fiore cast the pardon in biblical terms. Her statement began with a phrase lifted from the book of Isaiah: “No weapon formed against me shall prosper” and said she would return to her position as a Pahrump justice of the peace.

“On Monday, I will walk back into my courtroom as the elected Justice of the Peace — not because man permitted it, but because God ordained it,” she wrote.

Pahrump Justice Court administrator Alisa Shoults said she did not yet know if Fiore, who was suspended without pay by the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline, would return to her position Monday.

Fiore complained about that suspension, saying it was “a deliberate effort to break me, not just legally but financially.” She said she sold most of her possessions in an effort to pay her bills.

“They tried to bankrupt me,” she said. “I chose to break free. And I did it with dignity, not debt. I didn’t just survive their suspension — I turned it into a spiritual cleanse.”

The commission said it was “aware of the situation” but declined to comment.

David Sachar, director of the National Center for State Courts’ judicial ethics center, said Fiore’s case is “very unique.”

A pardon or not guilty verdict would not take away a state’s authority to discipline a judge, Sachar said. He believes the commission could still discipline Fiore for her underlying conduct.

‘We’re grateful’

Paola Armeni, the attorney who most recently represented Fiore in her federal case, said she has asked the commission to reinstate her client to the bench. Her position is that the pardon removes the basis for suspending Fiore.

“Obviously, we’re grateful,” Armeni said of Trump’s pardon.

Michael Sanft, Fiore’s lawyer at trial, said he was happy for Fiore.

He still argues that Fiore did not intend to benefit herself, but that her actions were part of her work as a councilwoman.

Attorney Kristina Wildeveld, who advocated for Fiore’s pardon, said she filed a petition with the Department of Justice in January, raising claims of vindictive prosecution and issues like the testimony of Fiore’s daughter, Sheena Siegel, whose testimony was thrown out after she said she may have signed a check from a political action account for which she was not a signatory, then refused to answer questions from prosecutors.

Wildeveld said she does not think Fiore’s political connections were the basis for her pardon. She attributes the decision to issues with the case and the trial.

“The normal process took place,” she said.

Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Review-Journal staff writer Jessica Hill contributed to this report.

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