Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
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Chesnoff with Terrance K. Watanabe, charged with owing $14.7 million to Caesars Palace and Rio, in 2009. RIGHT: With Paris Hilton, who pled guilty to drug possession, in 2010. PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRISTOPHER DEVARGAS/LAS VEGAS SUN (OVEREEM); STEVE MARCUS/LAS VEGAS SUN (WATANABE); LAS VEGAS SUN (HILTON) LEFT: After Christian Slater's wife was accused of bottling him at the Hard Rock, Slater's agent called Chesnoff to help out. For the record: "Christian's wife was delightful." Mötley Crüe vocalist Vince Neil benefited from Chesnoff's legal skills in a series of situations involving alcohol and driving, mostly. "Vince is a great guy," says Chesnoff. After master illusionist David Copperfield was accused of sexual assault, Chesnoff and his investigators found people who would impugn the woman's allegations. "In my opinion, this girl was not to be believed," Chesnoff says. "For months at a time, I did nothing but work on this. We went to where this girl was from; we were with people who met her; we were everywhere. I believe that David was 100 percent innocent and saw that the impact of this investigation could unfairly derail the most successful entertainment career on the Strip." No charges were ever brought against Copperfield, due in part, colleagues say, to Chesnoff's work on the case. When, in 2010, Paris Hilton was caught with a small amount of cocaine in her purse, she knew to reach out to Chesnoff. "Paris was nervous," the lawyer recalls. "It's frightening to get arrested. But she was reasonable, did her community service, and took it seriously. Paris is sophisticated and she realized that the gaming authorities were very serious about problems taking place inside the casinos' nightclubs." While Hilton avoided jail time, the attorney who prosecuted her was busted while buying cocaine two years later and Chesnoff received an unexpected windfall of positive exposure. Clark County District Attorney David Roger was running for reelection against Don Chairez, who aired a commercial showing that Chesnoff had donated $10,000 to Roger's campaign in 2009, followed by a shot of Chesnoff leading Hilton out of the courthouse, having escaped a jail sentence. "They played 'Waltzing Matilda,' like I had walked her out of it," Chesnoff says with some amusement. "Chairez lost the election, and it turned out to be $300,000 in free advertising for me." Less of a stroll was getting Mike Tyson sprung from a 2006 DUI charge in Arizona. "I said, 'Mike, here's the deal. The sheriff and DA want to put you back in prison for serious time. The only way it will work is if you listen to me.'" Tyson did listen and went through the necessary rehab and counseling. "We got Mike into a position where he got probation instead of prison." "I love that man. He turned my life around," Tyson says of Chesnoff. "Every lawyer was talking to me about doing time. David put in the work and really cared. Working with David was like training for a fight. He put together a team and we put our feet to the pedal. We did all the work. I did so much community service without being told to. I went to rehab. David got me cleaned up and I was not the guy who got arrested. He gave me life "JUST BECAUSE YOU GET ACCUSED OF SOMETHING, THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU DID IT." skills. If I got seven years then, I would have been finished. There would have been nothing for me. I am very grateful that he is in my life." Clearly, Chesnoff enjoys riding in like the cavalry. He sees it as his duty to preserve the rights of the good, the bad, and the ugly. And he's gone from representing the Spilotros and Mateckis of the world to the Tysons and the Hiltons, where the gray areas can be even grayer. But he insists that one thing remains constant in Vegas—and it's among the most valuable assets he brings to combustible situations. "The nature of the connections you need is still the same," says Chesnoff, looking happy about that. "No matter who you're dealing with, you go right to the top. Everything happens at the top in Las Vegas." V VEGASMAGAZINE.COM 084-089_V_FEAT_Chesnoff_Winter14.indd 89 89 1/10/14 11:00 AM