Hon. Andrew M. Mierins

Andrew M. Mierins was admitted to the State Bar of Nevada on April 29, 2009, and built a 14-year legal career in Elko County. He began his work in the courts as a Deputy Public Defender with the Elko County Public Defender's Office, where colleagues remembered him as a fierce advocate for his clients who nonetheless treated everyone he encountered with kindness and respect.

In 2012, Mierins was appointed Family Court Master for the Fourth Judicial District Court, a role he held for the remainder of his career. On the bench he presided over family drug court and juvenile drug court, and fellow judges recalled his evident compassion for the children who came before him. He also sought elected office as Justice of the Peace in 2016 and was considered for an appointment to the District Court bench following Judge Mason Simons' election.

Mierins was 54 years old at the time of his passing. Across the Elko County judiciary he was remembered as a trusted professional colleague, a mentor to fellow public defenders, and a loyal friend - a well-respected member of the legal community whose loss was deeply felt by those who served alongside him in the courts.