Linda DeMeo released a statement Monday about an ethics ruling she had requested, clearing her to run for Pahrump Justice of the Peace while her husband Tony DeMeo serves as the county sheriff.

DeMeo said she wrote a letter to the Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and Election Practices several months ago. In the letter she requested a formal determination about a possible conflict of interest.

"Rumors about a possible conflict of interest between my candidacy for justice of the peace and my husband's position as Nye County sheriff are greatly exaggerated," she said in a written statement.

The standing committee did not rule that a conflict existed, DeMeo said. The letter stated any possible conflicts, as with any judge, would be addressed on a case-by-case basis.

However, the standing committee consisting of six lawyers and two judges told her, "The standing committee has reviewed your request and deems it premature."

Linda DeMeo is one of 13 candidates for the second Pahrump Justice of the Peace position. The top two candidates after the Aug. 12 primary will face off in the general election Nov. 4.

The committee might not be able to address the question, DeMeo said.

She quoted from the letter, which stated, "Each case may be so fact-specific that the committee simply wouldn't be able to give a valid assessment."

Sheriff Tony DeMeo, during a break at a recent Nye County Commission meeting, explained how the system would work if his wife were elected justice of the peace during his term as sheriff:

"We'd have to go on a case-by-case basis like judges normally do, but they could not find an exact kind of conflict between her office and my office. They stated that. What they stated if I appear in front of her, that would be a conflict."

The sheriff said many judges, including Fifth District Judge Robert Lane, often recuse themselves from a particular case due to a conflict of interest.

Patty Cafferata, executive director of the Nevada Commission on Ethics, she could neither confirm nor deny a ruling was requested.