Las Vegas [Las Vegas Tribune]- He was charged with six felonies. His lawyer dumped him when he would not consent to a deal of two gross misdemeanors. (Maximum prison time: two years.) He fled to Canada. Now he sits in a Canadian jail, his home, car, and money gone, awaiting extradition to Nevada.

The question is, can a porn star get justice in Nevada? Not only doth the question ring out in the Nevada halls of justice, but in Nye County, the naughtiest county in the naughtiest state.

Nye County is nothing if not a weird dichotomy of sexual mores. On one hand, you have a county of God-fearing, church going born-agains, Mormons, Baptists, and a handful of Catholics…folks sometimes referred to as red necks On the other hand, you have a county peppered with brothels.

Yes, chickadees, prostitution flourishes in Nye County where it is perfectly legal. It is the place where soiled doves wait in line for their weekly check-ups beside mommies herding their kids in to the county for routine vaccinations. Until recently, all this took place in the same building which housed the court and district attorney’s office.

You would think the folks of Nye County would be the last people in America who would want to throw the book at Scott Austin, otherwise known as the star of “Kid Vegas: Whoremaster” and who could forget the sequel, “Kid Vegas: Trenchcoat Pornographer”?

Instead, Nye County juries are famous for convicting guys of crimes when they view their behavior as the slightest bit deviant. And Judge John P. Davis hands out the stiffest (no pun, honest) sentences for sex crimes in the state.

Would a thirtyish tattooed punk with an attitude, who seduced a hometown girl from Beatty, face prison time in front of a Nye County jury? Duh?

How heinous were Austin’s crimes to merit six felonies? I’m glad you asked me that question.

Austin and his 19-year-old girlfriend, and porn co-star visited Beatty for its homecoming and centennial celebration. They threw a party for the locals. Now, if you’ve ever been to Beatty, you probably noticed there isn’t a lot to do there. Whether you are 16 or 60, the sidewalks roll up pretty darned early. I’m just going to venture a guess here. A party thrown by a nationally known porn star in Beatty, Nevada is probably a big thing. Plus, there was free beer.

It seems Austin fondled a 16-year-old party attendee in the bathroom. He didn’t seduce her…he fondled her. Besides, the age of consent for sex is sixteen. No harm, no foul. Except in Nye County.

Just ask Brian Lepley. He’s been in prison for seven years for a sexual consensual encounter with a 16-year-old. True, there were some extenuating circumstances. Brian was a 32-year-old substitute teacher, and he is HIV positive.

It didn’t matter to the jury that the oral sex they had could not have spread HIV. It didn’t matter to the jury that HIV is not the same as AIDS. It didn’t matter to the jury that this 16-year- old pursued a relationship with Brian so Brian would buy him beer and pot. All that mattered was that Brian is gay, and the 16-year- old is a guy. Depending upon his next parole hearing, Brian could likely spend 20 more years in prison. Yes Austin, be afraid, be very afraid.

Austin was also charged with assaulting his girlfriend when he touched her intimately in bed. She was naked.

Sometimes you can’t stop a speeding train before it reaches its destination. The poor girl had to tell Austin she was not in the mood THREE times before he rolled over and went to sleep. (And they’re not even married.)

Now, I’m just going to venture a guess here, but could it be that any woman who has appeared in a porn video, has probably been around the block enough to know that if you sleep naked with a guy, he’s probably going to want S-E-X?

So why is there much ado about nothing? Well, because it’s Nye County, that’s why.

Just ask Paul Recktenwald. Again, a thirty something year old man involved with two teenagers. Before you guys switch to envy mode, I think I should inform you that Paul is doing six that’s 6, VI, life sentences.

Yes, he had sex with the girls. Yes he gave them pot. First the girls told the cops it happened when they were fifteen. Then, they told them it happened when they were sixteen. When the district attorney told them they would go to jail for lying, they went back to the fifteen. As soon as they could talk to Paul’s attorneys, they told all three attorneys it truly did happen when they were sixteen. All three attorneys had to resign from Paul’s case because they became his witnesses.

Even though the age of consent is sixteen, Paul was convicted of having sex with underage girls. Be afraid Austin, be very afraid.

Had Brian Lepley lived ANYWHERE else but Nye County, except maybe the bible belt, he would never have been convicted of a sexual crime. Had he lived in San Francisco, he would never have been charged with any crime. Peace baby.

Had Paul Recktenwald lived anywhere else but Nye County, he would have received a slap on the wrist, or maybe a secret handshake from an envious judge.

Be afraid Austin, be very afraid.

Liz Gini is a Certified Legal Assistant employed by the law office of Robert Glennen III Esq. She is the author of two book and is presently completing “The Abuses of Child Protective Services.”