A Las Vegas lawyer warned the nonprofit Hope for Prisoners that the organization’s founder, Jon Ponder, had “lost his way” astir six years earlier Ponder’s apprehension Tuesday connected suspicion of enactment battle and different charges, the Las Vegas Review-Journal has confirmed.
The politically connected Ponder, 60, is good known successful the Las Vegas Valley for his years of enactment arsenic main enforcement serviceman of the enactment that helps formerly incarcerated men and women reenter the workforce. Several Metropolitan Police Department administrators and the Clark County territory lawyer person antecedently served connected the organization’s Board of Directors.
Ponder, who is being held without bail, faces a full of 9 felonies and 11 gross misdemeanors, including suspicion of unauthorized interaction with a captive by situation worker oregon volunteer, attempted coercion, and attempted unauthorized interaction with a prisoner.
The enactment did not respond to a petition for remark Wednesday. Police person yet to item the specifics of the allegations against Ponder, who has had respective citizens oregon prominence talk connected behalf of Hope for Prisoners implicit the years. In 2024, the enactment listed his full compensation arsenic $213,226 per year, according to IRS filings.
A erstwhile slope robber and three-time felon, Ponder received a pardon from President Donald Trump successful 2020.
Concerns arose agelong earlier arrest
Longtime Las Vegas lawyer Kristina Wildeveld helped Ponder get some national and authorities pardons. She was besides a subordinate of the Hope for Prisoners committee of directors for years and helped the enactment rise money. In September 2020, she resigned from the committee and wrote a missive to committee members voicing concerns astir imaginable wrongdoings by Ponder.
The letter, obtained by the Review-Journal, was sent to the Hope for Prisoners Board of Directors astatine the time.
Wildeveld questioned however Ponder, portion serving connected the Nevada Sentencing Commission, could formed votes that kept a large pistillate from being released from prison. He besides formed a ballot that kept inmates with terrible wellness problems from going successful beforehand of the Nevada pardons committee to question relief, Wildeveld said successful the letter.
“To me, it appears that this enactment has losts its mode and it is of large interest that it is nary longer serving its people colonisation - alternatively the absorption had turned to promoting Jon Ponder and fundraising and promotion has been placed up of the archetypal mission,” Wildeveld wrote.
She said defence attorneys believed that “Jon Ponder has mislaid his way.”
“He is nary longer a typical of the persons successful prison, serving existent time,” she wrote. “He is mendacious anticipation for them, a con.”
Wildeveld declined remark Wednesday. In her resignation missive she wrote that Ponder had excessively overmuch power implicit Hope for Prisoners.
“The Board’s reliance connected 1 person, coupled with permitting the ngo of instrumentality enforcement to supplant the Hope for Prisoners’ ngo is simply a surefire disaster,” Wildeveld wrote.
Ponder declined a petition for an interrogation for this story.
Paul Lunkwitz, president of a national that represents corrections officers crossed the state, said Ponder was viewed with skepticism.
“The opinions that person been relayed to maine of Jon Ponder — they were not successful a affirmative light,” Lunkwitz said. “He sides with the inmates, treats officers poorly. Those were what were straight expressed to me. He was not precise good liked by the officers.”
Lunkwitz said complaints were voiced astir Ponder wrong the situation system.
“My knowing is that adjacent erstwhile officers had concerns oregon complaints that they aired each the mode up to the manager oregon lawman director, that this feline had immoderate benignant of extracurricular power that whitethorn person prevented the level of scrutiny that idiosyncratic other whitethorn person received,” Lunkwitz said.
Prison officials started investigating allegations against Ponder successful April, and referred their findings to Metro, according to a corrections section spokesperson. Ponder was past barred from entering situation facilities.
“The NDOC continues its concern with Hope for Prisoners with vocational grooming astatine Southern Desert Correctional Center,” the spokesperson wrote. “The NDOC does not expect immoderate disruption to those services.”
Wife alleged home violence
Ponder’s wife, Jamie Ponder, filed a ailment for divorcement successful District Court successful June. In the archetypal complaint, Jamie Ponder filled retired a signifier that asked if determination were different tribunal cases that could interaction the divorcement proceeding.
A effect nether the question stated “He has pending transgression charges.” Another enactment successful the divorcement filing referenced a petition for a impermanent protective bid connected June 7.
A container for “domestic violence” was besides checked successful the filing.
In the exertion for the protective bid Jamie Ponder wrote:
“I recovered retired my hubby was having an affair. I seen messages connected his phone. I confronted him and our speech escalated. He enactment his hands connected maine and pushed maine against the wall-hallway. We had different speech successful our country and helium enactment his hands astir my mouth. My girls some said get your hands disconnected my mom.”
Jamie Ponder wrote successful her divorcement ailment that she was babelike connected her hubby for finances.
“I was terminated from my employment with our nonprofit enactment astatine my husband’s absorption and presently person nary income,” Jamie Ponder wrote. “I devoted years to helping physique HOPE for Prisoners alongside my husband, which constricted my fiscal independence. I americium requesting fiscal enactment to support unchangeable lodging and conscionable my basal surviving expenses during this transition.”
Jamie Ponder aboriginal filed an amended ailment successful which pending transgression charges were not referenced. District Court records bespeak the ailment for divorcement was aboriginal withdrawn successful July. A pistillate who answered a telephone fig contained successful the divorcement filing declined remark erstwhile reached by the Review-Journal.
Hope for Prisoners graduates much than 450 radical per twelvemonth and has extended ties to instrumentality enforcement successful Southern Nevada. The nonprofit has successful the past worked with Metro, the College of Southern Nevada, The Vegas Chamber, Workforce Connections, the authorities Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation and hundreds of volunteers.
One of the organization’s galore supporters has been Billy Walters, who was erstwhile considered 1 of the astir palmy sports bettors successful the country. In 2022 he helped Hope for Prisoners establish the Billy Walters Center for Second Chances, 333 N. Rancho Drive. During a 2022 ceremonial Walters said his clip successful situation motivated him to springiness backmost to those who person been incarcerated.
Walters was released from national prison successful 2020 aft serving 2½ years of his five-year sentence, which was handed down successful July 2017 and included a $10 cardinal fine. Walters received a commutation from Trump successful 2021.
Former Las Vegas Raiders person Henry Ruggs III — who pleaded blameworthy to driving nether the power successful a clang that killed a pistillate successful Las Vegas successful November 2021 — spoke to different inmates successful June 2025 portion incarcerated successful a speech facilitated by Ponder and Hope for Prisoners.
Wolfson recuses
Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said Wednesday helium is recusing himself from the lawsuit and assigning adjunct territory attorneys to the case.
“Based upon the information that I antecedently served arsenic a committee subordinate for Hope For Prisoners, and the information that I person participated successful galore of that organization’s graduations, I person removed myself from immoderate decision-making relation successful the lawsuit of the State of Nevada V. Jon Ponder,” Wolfson said successful an email.
After Ponder received his pardon from Trump, helium said erstwhile helium got retired of situation helium was committed to turning his beingness around.
“We unrecorded successful a federation of 2nd chances,” Ponder said arsenic helium thanked the Metropolitan Police Department members who volunteered their clip to assistance Hope for Prisoners participants.
“My anticipation for America is that instrumentality enforcement and radical successful the communities crossed the state tin travel unneurotic and recognize that arsenic Americans we person much successful communal than we person differences,” Ponder said.
According to a anterior Las Vegas Review-Journal story, Trump met Ponder erstwhile helium sat successful the beforehand enactment of a Rose Garden solemnisation for the National Day of Prayer successful 2018.
“Jon grew up without his father,” Trump said, adding that Ponder’s parent was incapable to support the young antheral “out of gangs and disconnected the streets.”
After Ponder joined him astatine the podium, Trump looked implicit his double-breasted suit and tie, and said approvingly, “You don’t look similar a slope robber. You’ve travel a agelong way.”
Contact Glenn Puit astatine gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
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