Gianoli is running for Municipal Judge: The Spice House case raises questions
Gianoli tried to convict a poor single mother of a serious crime in an entrapment scheme. A district judge overturned the Case. Now she is asking voters to trust her with the bench.
Mar 04, 2026
Angela Gianoli is on the ballot in the November 2026 election seeking the Reno Municipal Court, Department 1 judgeship. The City of Reno’s election list shows Gianoli will face Jenny Diane Hubach in the general election on November 3, 2026.
RGJ Story: Election 2026: Judicial filings mean changes at Washoe and Reno courts.
Gianoli’s work history: a career built inside courtrooms
Gianoli is a Deputy City Attorney at the City of Reno. Her campaign biography frames her as a long-time courtroom lawyer focused on misdemeanor work, emphasizing “nearly 20 years” of experience and a “firm but fair” approach that pairs accountability with treatment-focused alternatives.
That combination matters for this job. Reno Municipal Court is where the system touches the most people — traffic cases, misdemeanors, and city ordinance violations — and it’s where credibility matters.
A municipal judge doesn’t get the luxury of being “mostly right.” The public only needs one moment that appears to be “the fix is in” to lose confidence for years.
Angela poses with her husband, Scott Husbands, who is a General Counsel at UNR. Scott was formerly a Deputy/Assistent Attorney General for the Nevada Attorney General’s Office and left under unusual circumstances, according to a source close to the matter.
How fair, compassionate, and accountable is Gianoli?
Angela Gianoli’s campaign for Reno Municipal Court Judge is built on three words:
Fairness. Compassion. Accountability.
Her website promises dignity, transparency, and equal justice. She speaks of understanding root causes, supporting treatment-focused alternatives, and ensuring that every person is treated with respect.
But voters should also examine her prosecutorial record — particularly her role in one of Reno’s most controversial municipal prosecutions during the city’s campaign against downtown strip clubs.
Because campaign language and courtroom conduct are not the same thing.
Angie and her team are getting busy early with a fundraiser at a wine bar that I like, but I won’t be attending. What is interesting is that Gianoli is using the same fundraisers and messaging agencies as Devon Reese and appears to be politically connected to him.
The Case of an undercover agent and the word “Maybe.”
In 2018, during Reno’s political fight to push strip clubs out of downtown, which was championed by Reno Mayor Hillary Schive, a dancer known publicly as “Stephanie” was cited in an undercover police entrapment sting at the Spice House.
Stephanie was a single mother commuting from California’s Central Valley to work in Reno. According to reporting by the Reno Gazette-Journal, she repeatedly told an undercover officer “no” several times when he asked about sex services.
At one point — while attempting to sell a private dance — she said “maybe” when the undercover officer asked if he could perform a sex act on her. She was underpressure, she was trying to deflect him. She needed to sell dances to pay the cover fee and make a little money.
Stephanie was charged with solicitation. Angela Gianoli was the prosectuor.
At trial in Municipal Court before Tammy Riggs, she was convicted and fined $8. The fine was symbolic. The real consequence was severe: a solicitation conviction would have made her ineligible to work as a dancer in Reno for five years — her primary source of income supporting two children.
Judicial Complaint: What a Mother Alleged About Judge Bridget Robb
Who gets elected as a judge can have a big impact on your life if you end up in court.
The Political Context
The prosecution occurred during a broader city effort to remove strip clubs from downtown Reno. The City Council had commissioned a private investigator. The political climate was charged. Mayor Hillary Schieve, who claims to support women and small businesses, championed the effort to target clubs by entrapping workers.
Stephanie’s attorney, Mark Thierman of Thierman Buck, argued the Case was part of a “vindictive prosecution” connected to that larger policy fight.
You may or may not like strip clubs, but they are legal, licensed, and pay taxes. The workers are also licensed, must pass a background check, and pay fees to work.
It’s as difficult and as expensive to get a license as a strip club worker as it is to get a suppressor for your firearm. I know. I’ve talked with some of them.
Reno had no legal justification for engaging in this targeted entrapment scheme. It was a tactic in Mayor Schieve’s broader revitalization plan.
Nevada Indy story: Indy Explains: The ongoing fight over Reno’s strip clubs
The Appeal and a Reversal
Stephanie appealed. In March 2020, Kathleen Drakulich overturned the conviction.
Drakulich reviewed the undercover audio herself and created her own transcript. Her conclusion was blunt:
Judge Drakulich did not rule on the political claim — but she did rule on the evidence. And on the evidence, the conviction failed.
There was “a lack of substantial evidence.”
The city had not proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Stephanie agreed to a sex act.
“Maybe,” the district judge concluded, did not equal “yes.”
RGJ story: Lawyer for Spice House stripper accuses city of ‘vindictive prosecution.’
Gianoli’s Position in Court
During the appeal hearing, Deputy City Attorney Angela Gianoli argued:
The court should rely on the undercover officer’s testimony rather than the difficult-to-hear tape.
The political motivation argument raised by defense attorney Mark Thierman should not be considered.
Nevada law defines solicitation as offering, agreeing to, or arranging for a sex act, and she maintained that the standard had been met.
Gianoli emphasized that the context was sexualized and that solicitation occurs when someone agrees to a sex act. Gianoli argued that Stephanie had said “yes,” but the recording has her saying “maybe.” Gianoli was scolded by the judge for misrepresenting what was said. The conviction was overturned.
RGJ story: Judge overturns conviction of Spice House stripper who said ‘maybe’ to undercover Reno cop
Campaign Messaging vs. Prosecutorial Record
Now, Gianoli’s judicial campaign speaks of:
Understanding root causes
Supporting treatment alternatives
Ensuring dignity
Fair and equal justice
Her website emphasizes compassion and the human dimension of municipal court.
🏙️ The Keshmiri Empire: Strip Clubs, Real Estate, and a Storied History in Reno
The Keshmiris owned the Spice House along with the Wild Orchid, Bonanza Inn, and other properties, and they have been embroiled in disputes with the city for years.
But in this Case:
A low-income single mother faced a conviction that threatened her livelihood.
The audio recording did not contain a clear agreement to a sex act.
The district court found insufficient evidence beyond a reasonable doubt.
The prosecution sought to uphold the conviction despite the unclear evidence.
The Case appeared to be a politically motivated entrapment
That is not an accusation of misconduct. Prosecutors prosecute cases. They argue their interpretation of the law.
But voters deciding on a judicial candidate should ask:
What does fairness look like in practice?
How much discretion should be exercised when evidence is ambiguous?
What weight should be given to life-altering consequences in misdemeanor prosecutions?
Is it ethical to use your office for political reasons?
The Judicial Question
The Municipal Court is where ordinary people encounter the justice system. For many defendants, the consequences are not theoretical. They are life-changing.
The Spice House case raises a simple tension: Campaign language emphasizes compassion and dignity. The prosecutorial record reflects a hard-line interpretation of solicitation law in a politically motivated case.
The Judge, the Senior Partner, the Junior Lawyer and the Scandal
Reno knows about a scandal involving judges. You can’t believe what they can get up to.
The Decision for Voters
Angela Gianoli presents herself as “firm but fair.”
The question for Reno voters is: When evidence is thin, when livelihoods are on the line, and when political pressure surrounds a case, where does Angela lean?
Gianoli persisted in prosecuting a case of questionable merit, apparently for political gain. On the tape, the word was “maybe.” At the appellate level, it was “no”.
Now voters must decide whether her courtroom instincts align with the judicial philosophy she describes on the campaign trail. Would this be a court where you would find fairness?
In a judicial race, character is revealed less by slogans and more by past choices. And those choices are part of the public record. Would you want to be in court with her?
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