After five days of silence from the major broadcast networks, ABC’s Good Morning America broke ranks Tuesday to rediscover the brutal murder of longtime Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German allegedly at the hands of Democratic Clark County, Nevada Public Administrator Robert Telles. And, beyond that, ABC broke the network-wide blackout in noting Telles’s party ID.
“ABC News exclusive, with the Las Vegas politician accused of murdering an investigative journalist due in court, one of his former co-workers is speaking out this morning about what she witnessed in the office with the suspect as we learn new details about the attack,” said co-host George Stephanopoulos in the first of two teases.
Correspondent Erielle Reshef carried out the four-minute-and-17-second report (which upped the network total to 12 minutes and 26 seconds) and began by noting that “a new criminal complaint” said German’s murder was “willful, deliberate, and premeditated.”
“This morning, a Las Vegas politician now formally charged with murdering an investigative journalist as one of his former co-workers speaks out to ABC News about what she says she witnessed in the workplace before her boss was charged with the crime,” she added.
Rita Reid — who worked with Telles for three years — had suspicions about Telles being behind German’s murder following the latter’s Review-Journal articles chronicling the work environment that Reshef said “caused emotional stress and...a hostile work environment.”
“He came into my office several times in a rage. You saw stress every day in multiple employees, and it just became worse and worse,” Reid said before Reshef noted Telles also allegedly “had an inappropriate relationship with an employee that rocked the office dynamic because of preferential treatment he allegedly gave her.”
Moments later, party ID finally emerged when Reshef said, along with joining her colleagues in approaching German, “Reid...became so appalled by his behavior she ran against Telles in the Democratic primary” and defeated him, leaving Telles without a job come January.
Just one sentence. That was all ABC could muster. To reiterate the obvious, there would more than one mention across nearly 12 and a half minutes of coverage if Telles were a Republican (along with platitudes about what it means for American democracy).
Reid explained that she and her colleagues went “public” by “try[ing] to talk to a journalist here in our community and see if somebody felt it was worthy of reporting” and, following German’s stories, Reshef said Telles anger increased.
As for what she thought Telles would have done, Reid said she “felt there might be an encounter one day or an altercation, a verbal altercation but I just — I could never have imagined this.”
Speaking of German, Reid said “[h]is death was absolutely devastating to myself and my co-workers, the people that he advocated for” as “[h]e was our hero” and “we can never thank him enough.”
To see the relevant ABC transcript from September 13, click “expand.”
ABC’s Good Morning America
September 13, 2022
7:01 a.m. Eastern [TEASE][ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: ABC News Exclusive; Murder in Sin City]
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: ABC News exclusive, with the Las Vegas politician accused of murdering an investigative journalist due in court, one of his former co-workers is speaking out this morning about what she witnessed in the office with the suspect as we learn new details about the attack.
(....)
7:17 a.m. Eastern [TEASE]
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: ABC News Exclusive; Public Official Accused of Murder in Court; Co-Worker of Man Charged With Killing Journalist Speaks Out]
STEPHANOPOULOS: A lot more coming up on GMA, including the public official arrested in the murder of a journalist set to face a judge right now. This morning, we’re going to hear from one of his co-workers, what she witnessed while working — while working for the suspect.
(....)
7:32 a.m. Eastern
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: ABC News Exclusive; Public Official Accused of Murder in Court; Co-Worker of Man Charged With Killing Journalist Speaks Out]
STEPHANOPOULOS: We get the latest now on the killing of a Las Vegas journalist over a critical article he wrote. The co-worker of the Las Vegas official accused of the crime is speaking out. Erielle Reshef here with the exclusive interview. Good morning, Erielle.
ERIELLE RESHEF: Hey, George, good morning to you. The politician set to face a judge today and overnight, in a new criminal complaint, prosecutors calling this crime willful, deliberate, and premeditated. Now, one of the suspect's colleagues is sharing what he was like in the workplace before the journalist's death. This morning, a Las Vegas politician now formally charged with murdering an investigative journalist as one of his former co-workers speaks out to ABC News about what she says she witnessed in the workplace before her boss was charged with the crime.
RITA REID: And I realized that it was true and that Jeff had been found murdered. My first thought was Robert Telles, and then I thought, no, it couldn't be.
RESHEF: Until his arrest last week, Rita Reid served for three years in the office alongside Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles. She says, as a boss, Telles caused emotional stress and created a hostile work environment.
REID: He came into my office several times in a rage. You saw stress every day in multiple employees, and it just became worse and worse.
RESHEF: Reid also alleges Telles had an inappropriate relationship with an employee that rocked the office dynamic because of preferential treatment he allegedly gave her. Telles had denied he created a toxic environment or had an inappropriate relationship, saying he only turned to the colleague as a trusted friend for advice.
REID: One of our staff was told during one of the complaints that he had the right to have favorites in the office if he wanted.
RESHEF: Reid says she became so appalled by his behavior she ran against Telles in the Democratic primary and she and her co-workers approached longtime Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative reporter Jeff German with their allegations.
REID: So we decided that we would go public. We would try to talk to a journalist here in our community and see if somebody felt it was worthy of reporting.
RESHEF: German wrote a series of scathing articles on Telles’s alleged toxic behavior.
REID: Primarily, there were some things in social media where he was voicing that anger against the articles.
RESHEF: Telles venting on Twitter and in one blog post taking aim at German's reporting, writing, “it was so ugly that you almost had to believe it was true. I can understand why you might have, with the writer's skill at pushing buttons.” With each article, Reid says Telles’s combative response caused anxiety among the staff. He ultimately conceded the primary to Reid, but would remain in office through January.
REID: I guess maybe I felt there might be an encounter one day or an altercation, a verbal altercation but I just — I could never have imagined this.
RESHEF: Authorities believe Telles cased German’s home, lying in wait, according to a criminal complaint, then disguised in a reflective vest and large hat, fatally stabbed him as alleged retribution.
CLARK COUNTY CHIEF DEPUTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY RICHARD SCOW: The victim, 69-year-old Jeff German, was stabbed seven times.
RESHEF: The politician taken into custody five days later after a standoff with police.
REPORTER #1 [TO TELLES]: Did you do this?
REPORTER #2 [TO TELLES]: Can you tell us anything?
RESHEF: Investigators say they found DNA evidence linking Telles to the gruesome scene.
SCOW: DNA recovered from the victim's hands, under his fingernails, they do identify the DNA as the defendant's.
RESHEF: Reid believes German's commitment to their story cost him his life.
REID: His death was absolutely devastating to myself and my co-workers, the people that he advocated for. He was our hero. I mean, we can never thank him enough.
RESHEF: And we reached out to Telles’s attorney. So far, they are not commenting. Telles is due in court later this morning. As we mentioned, he is currently being held without bail and has not yet entered a plea. Clark County says when the allegations of a hostile work environment arose a couple of months ago, it no longer had employees report to Telles and the county is reporting with investigators, but the bottom line here, guys, is there is a journalist who lost his life.
MICHAEL STRAHAN: Yeah.
STEPHANOPOULOS: Horrible crime. Thank you, Erielle.
STRAHAN: Thank you, Erielle.
