Nevada senator says her adopted son shot, wounded nephew

NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. (AP) — A veteran Democratic state senator now running for mayor of North Las Vegas said Friday that her 21-year-old adopted son shot and wounded her nephew at her home while she was at a community event.

“My son, Na’Onche, shot my nephew,” Sen. Pat Spearman told reporters outside the North Las Vegas jail where police said Na’Onche Tamar Osborne was being held pending an initial court appearance on felony attempted murder, battery with weapon and firearm charges. Court records did not immediately reflect if Osborne had an attorney.

Spearman said her nephew was “recovering at a hospital from non-life-threatening wounds.”

North Las Vegas police said officers were called about 6:45 p.m. Thursday to a report of a shooting in a home in the city’s northwest, and a man in his 40s was taken to University Medical Center in Las Vegas with a gunshot wound.

Spearman said Osborne surrendered to police.

Spearman is a three-term state senator who made an unsuccessful bid for U.S. Congress in 2020. She is now vying with a city councilwoman, Pamela Goynes Brown, in a nonpartisan race to replace Mayor John Lee, who gave up his seat to make a failed bid for the Republican nomination for governor.

Spearman, a pastor and former Army lieutenant colonel, characterized herself as a “heartbroken” mother, sister and aunt. She did not take questions from reporters following her statement, which she delivered outdoors, wearing dark sunglasses and flanked by supporters.

Spearman did not directly address her mayoral candidacy but said she was resolved “to continue my leadership role in our community stronger than ever.”

“Let me be clear. This is not about politics,” she declared. “It is about a family that is struggling.”

Spearman’s campaign manager, Lisa Mayo DeRiso, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Spearman was not dropping out of the mayoral race.

Spearman told reporters she adopted her son as a troubled teenager to “show him a better life” in “a strong, loving and supportive home.”

“Na’Onche made a very poor decision and he’ll have to face the consequences,” Spearman said. “As a mother, I support the justice system and my son. It is with a heavy heart that my family is impacted by gun violence.”

Spearman said she was at a Halloween event at a school during the shooting.