After Reese’s Academy Award performance on Nevada Newsmakers the other day … you know the tee-up to please come to my fundraiser because i’m a ‘man of the people’ and not a ‘vexatious litigant” kind of guy.

Reno City Councilmember Devon Reese’s high-dollar fundraiser tonight at The Elm Estate — because nothing says “man of the people” quite like one of Reno’s priciest venues.

Today, Picon witnessed what could only be described as a televised bromance between Nevada Newsmakers’ own Sam Shad and Reno City Councilmember Devon Reese — and let’s just say, if there was a candlelit dinner involved, we wouldn’t be surprised.

From the opening minute, it was clear this wasn’t an interview — it was an infomercial for Reese 2026. Shad practically rolled out a red carpet, fluffed Reese’s political pillow, and offered him a free campaign ad disguised as journalism.

Well, what do you know — Sparks City Councilmember Joe Rodriguez wrapped up his ethics saga this week without a meltdown, a tirade, or a televised tantrum.

The Nevada Commission on Ethics approved a deferral and dismissal deal in the case against Rodriguez — the one where he was accused of using a few photos in uniform during his 2022 campaign for school board. After the usual legal rollercoaster (complaint, violation, fine, appeal, and settlement), the final decision reads nice and clean:

“Rodriguez has not committed any violation of the Ethics Law.”

Devon Reese and the perils of public service.

Councilmember Devon Reese doesn’t like Picon. That’s fine. He’s called us hacks, not journalists, accuses us of “sensationalizing,” of “causing conflict and pain,” and dismisses us as a blog. We’ll defend his right to say all that — because that’s what the First Amendment is for. We’ll even defend his right to call citizens who disagree with him “mentally ill,” “stalkers,” or “creepy.” That’s his opinion — and he’s welcome to it.

It’s that time again when Reno politics starts to feel less like City Hall and more like a soap opera filmed in a haunted mansion. This week’s episode stars Mayor Hillary Schieve, her new venture Spooge (yes, that’s really the name), and a political friendship circle that’s starting to look like a Ouija board of broken alliances.

If you’re not following Shaun Mullin on social media—especially Nextdoor—you’re missing out on some of the sharpest satire Reno has seen since… well, since Reno thought the Lear Theater was a good idea. Mullin has made an art form out of skewering the Reno City Council, a collection of politicians so thin-skinned they’d probably break out in hives if someone drew them a stick figure cartoon.

Hold on tight, Reno. City Councilman Devon Reese is suddenly in the business of apologies — and we’re supposed to buy it. He offered up a half-hearted “sorry” over the Lear Theatre flap, but let’s be real: this isn’t remorse, it’s rehearsal. Reese isn’t apologizing to fix his behavior — he’s auditioning for the role of Nice Guy Mayor 2026.

I’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again—why does the Nevada Commission on Ethics even exist? Yesterday’s meeting was nothing more than a backroom deal factory, where everything is conveniently confidential. Translation: citizens are kept in the dark while politicians cut themselves sweetheart deals.

Well, it looks like the Nevada Commission on Ethics has folded again — or to put it less politely, chicken-shitted out.

The Lear Theater, one of Reno’s most historic cultural landmarks, should be a source of pride — a hub of opportunity for the city to honor its past while investing in its future. Instead, City Hall treats it like an unwanted hand-me-down: an albatross to be pawned off, not a treasure to be restored.

Now, yet again, someone has come forward with a “Letter of Interest” to develop the property — and the unsolicited offer sort of has the smell of an offer that was made for 4th and Record Street. Enthusiasm is not a plan, and the Lear is drowning in decades of exactly that: empty promises and well-intentioned neglect.

In A River Runs Through It, the line “I am haunted by waters” speaks to beauty, memory, and loss. Under Devon Reese’s mayoral campaign, the Truckee River has taken on a far less poetic role: haunted not by nostalgia, but by neglect.

Reese, who now poses as the river’s great protector, has presided over years in which the Truckee became the city’s restroom of last resort. Residents don’t need campaign slogans — they need to be able to walk by the river without dodging human waste. Yet here’s Reese, standing riverside for campaign photos, hoping the public forgets what really flows downstream.

Well, folks, break out the campaign buttons — because yes, Devon Reese is officially running for Reno mayor. And if you feel like you’ve seen this movie before, you probably have. The script hasn’t changed much: big promises, bigger fundraising asks, and that ever-present question — who’s Reno really for? The residents… or Reese’s rolodex of developer friends?

Only in Reno do you cancel a hybrid meeting—yes, hybrid—25 minutes before it’s set to start because of “no quorum.” Think about that. Residents showed up in person, people were ready online, and yet somehow the City of Reno couldn’t round up enough board members to click a Zoom link or dial in by phone?

Ward 5 residents dutifully schlepped downtown, navigated parking headaches, and wove through City Hall’s sidewalk homeless scene just to be greeted by a notice of cancellation. The message? Your time is disposable.

How sad is this? A recent opinion in This Is Reno reminded us of something that Councilmember Devon Reese never seems to understand: when you sign up for public office, you don’t get to pick and choose which residents you’ll interact with.

You wanted the appointment. Then you wanted the election. And yet here we are, watching Reese decide who’s “worthy” of his attention and who gets brushed off as a nuisance. Spoiler: that’s not how democracy works.

So, Devon Reese accidentally let it slip – by listing the wrong office on an amended Nevada Secretary of State contribution and expense report – that he’s running for mayor. But while the ink is still wet on that paperwork, Reese is already using his platform to peddle feel-good talking points about “compromise,” “collaboration,” and “problem solving” in a Reno Gazette Journal op-ed on data centers.

If Reno politics had a royal court, case CV25-01334 would be the scandal of the season. Picture it: a wine bar, an elderly gentleman, and a Reno City Councilmember with 2026 mayoral dreams—except the evening allegedly turned from small talk to small brawl, and now we’re all waiting for the tapes.

The wine bar’s two strategically placed cameras are the crown jewels in this drama. When the footage is uncorked. The video should finally reveal this story.

Is it appropriate for media to laugh themselves silly at a Reno City Councilmember’s social media post? We don’t know. But we did.

After nine long months of blissful indifference, Ward 5’s very own Devon Reese has suddenly fallen head over heels for his Neighborhood Advisory Board. The same board he barely mentioned since being reelected in November 2024 is now the talk of his Facebook feed. He’s appointing members, hunting for alternates, and celebrating that they “hit the ground running” with discussions of two Ward 5 projects.

So why the sudden civic passion? Could it be… he’s running for mayor? Oh, absolutely.

Just when you thought the courtroom drama of Michael Leonard vs. Sarah Velto, Alex Velto, Connor McQuivey, Renoites, Devon Reese, and Reese Ring Velto PLLC couldn't possibly get more absurd — the script gets another rewrite.

Fresh off the wine-splashed tension of the Belleville Bar standoff between Leonard and Reese (yes, that one) earlier this year - then the police report, and following a steady stream of filings thicker than a Tolstoy novel in the 2nd Judicial District Court, a new character bursts onto the stage: Simons Hall & Johnston.

Picon had been told by an employee inside City of Reno Government the announcement there would be employee layoffs would be coming in early July 2025 - sure enough our intel was correct and the press release was issued yesterday regarding eight city employees positions being cut. Our inside intel said they knew all along these cuts were necessary but Mayor Hillary Schieve and Councilmember Devon Reese didn’t want the announcement to come until the council was on their summer break. Basically the City of Reno let the City of Sparks climb out on that limb with layoffs alone, while Reno allowed the scenario to appear they would not have any layoffs. We ponder if Sparks City Manager Dion Louthan will have a few harsh words for Jackie Bryant the next time they have coffee.

Back in November 2022, the public learned something both unsettling and bizarre: a GPS tracker had been found on Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve’s car. Cue the political fireworks. Fingers were pointed fast, and one private investigator we’d worked with was thrown under the bus—by the mayor herself.

But facts are facts. The Sparks Police Department did their job and cleared him of any involvement in anyway - his name should have never come up. They told the mayor straight: the tracker had been planted by another private investigator—David McNeely—a man Picon has never hired, never spoken to, and frankly, wouldn't recognize if he walked by us.