Lady Justice had her hands full in Nye County during 2007 when several major crimes found their way for adjudication in the Nye County courthouse. For some, trials were concluded and verdicts delivered, but for others, their fate still hangs in the balance, waiting for completion in the new year.

Nye County found itself in the national spotlight this year when a video tape found in the desert here led to a nationwide manhunt -- and ultimate arrest -- of alleged child molester Chester Stiles.

The videotape, which was turned over to the Nye County Sheriff's Office in September by local resident Darrin Tuck Jr., showed a then 2-year-old girl being sexually molested.

The victim, now 7-years-old, was found safe in Las Vegas living with her mother and fortunately is reported to have no memory of the events that occurred.

For Stiles and Tuck, however, the identification and location of the victim was far from the end of the affair.

Stiles, who was identified by the FBI as a fugitive for a previous incident involving his alleged molestation of another minor, was arrested Oct. 13 in Henderson.

The arrest was the result of an initially innocuous traffic stop of the white Buick Century he was driving. Stiles handed officers a California drivers license that looked nothing like him, finally telling officers, "I'm tired of running" and admitting to his real identity.

He was booked into the Clark County Detention Center, where he currently remains in custody on over 21 charges, included numerous sexual assault charges and lewdness with a minor under the age of 14.

Stiles recently appeared in court and waived his preliminary hearing, reportedly to save the witnesses from the ordeal of having to testify.

At that hearing the judge dropped one felony charge of use of a minor in producing pornography, still leaving him with 22 state charges to face, of which several, by themselves, carry life sentences.

His arraignment was continued.

Tuck was originally arrested during the course of the investigation and booked on charges of possession of child pornography.

He was released on his own recognizance but arrested again during the course of the investigation for failing to comply with his probation.

Tuck's probation was part of a plea agreement he made with the state on felony charges of failing to pay child support.

He was sentenced to five months in the Nye County Detention Center for that charge and, while incarcerated was formally charged with possession of child pornography.

Authorities allege Tuck had the tape for several months prior to turning it over.

Tuck has continually maintained he was on methamphetamine when he found the tape, and as such was not inclined to interact with law enforcement.

He turned the tape over while enrolled in drug court as part of his effort to straighten out.

Tuck pleaded not guilty to the charge at his arraignment and is expected to appear in court for a two-day trial sometime early next year.

Two families lost a son in different ways this year when Tyler Aaron Gibbons, 17, was sentenced in August to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole for the murder of 12-year-old Anthony Risko.

The teenager was convicted of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon. Due to the deadly weapon enhancement, Gibbons will not be eligible for parole for 40 years.

Gibbons, who was 15 at the time, was convicted of shooting Risko in the head with a .22-caliber rifle on the victim's 12th birthday.

Testimony during the trial by Duston Oliver, Gibbons' best friend at the time of the incident, told the story of a typical teenage afternoon gone tragically wrong.

The three kids were hanging out at Gibbons' house June 8, 2006, when Oliver said he heard Risko crying.

Oliver walked into the room to find Gibbons holding a rifle to the young boy's head, asking him if he was "ready."

Despite Oliver's warning, Gibbons pulled the trigger and Risko fell to the floor, dying from the injuries he sustained.

At his emotional sentencing hearing, Gibbons told the court, "What I did was stupid. All I can say is that I'm sorry, to the court, to the family, from the bottom of my heart I never wanted this to happen.

"I can't even explain how badly I feel. Anthony was one of my friends, and I would have defended him in any way."

Dawn Risko, the victim's mother, carried the urn holding her son's ashes to the hearing and found little consolation in the apology.

"Tyler, I hope when you hear your prison cell door close every night and day that you hear Anthony ... crying for you to stop as you try to sleep at night."

Tom Gibson, Gibbons' defense attorney, said the sentence will be appealed.

David Lee Cleveland, former owner of Pahrump Valley Homes, spent much of 2007 wrangling with the justice system after his involvement in a head-on collision Thanksgiving Day in 2006 that resulted in the death of Jeremy Moon, 27, of Fontana, Calif.

The accident also severely injured Jeremy Moon's wife, Anna, and their cousin, Crystal Lopez, a Pahrump Valley High School student.

He is currently facing six felony charges: three of driving under the influence of a controlled substance (listed in the criminal complaint as cocaine) causing substantial bodily harm, one count of the same charge causing death, and two counts of unlawful use of a controlled substance.

Cleveland was originally bailed out of jail the day of the accident (his original bail was $50,000).

A motion by the state to increase his bail was denied, but his release was contingent upon a number of conditions, including relinquishing his driver's license and being subject to random drug tests.

When he failed to comply with the latter caveat, however, Justice of the Peace Tina Brisebill revoked his bail and he was detained in the Nye County Detention Center, where he remains today.

His preliminary hearing was continued several times, however, when Cleveland changed counsel at the last minute three times and at one aborted hearing was even physically removed from the courtroom after yelling at the judge, his lawyers and even the grieving family members in the gallery.

Cleveland was sent to the Lakes Crossing medical facility in February so doctors there could determine his competency to aid in his defense and stand trial.

When Cleveland finally had his preliminary hearing in May, testimony revealed an attempt by him to bribe the passenger of the vehicle, Raymond Hancock, into saying he was driving the SUV.

At his arraignment in Fifth District Court, Cleveland pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

The issue of bail resurfaced at the arraignment, resulting in Fifth District Judge Robert Lane ordering that Cleveland be held without bail until trial.

At the state's request, he underwent a second court-ordered evaluation at Lakes Crossing where he was deemed competent.

In July, Cleveland's attorneys filed a writ of habeas corpus arguing that some of the lab tests were processed incorrectly, but this was denied.

In October, Cleveland changed his plea to simply not guilty and the trial was continued, ironically, at the request of the state.

Prosecutors argued they needed time to retrieve information from the "black box" in the vehicle, that both sides needed blood test results, and experts such as accident recreation specialists for both sides needed to be coordinated.

As of this writing, Cleveland's trial is scheduled to begin on Jan. 16 of the coming year.