Odom won’t face drug charges in brothel incident

The Nye County District Attorney's office decided that they will not file drug charges against former NBA and reality TV star Lamar Odom after his brothel incident in October.

Nye County District Attorney Angela Bello issued a statement Monday morning explaining the decision not to pursue charges against Odom after the Nye County Sheriff's Office asked the DA's office to review their request for prosecution against Odom for use of, or being under the influence of, a controlled substance.

"Based on the present evidence and surrounding circumstances, the Nye County District Attorney's office has decided not to bring drug charges against Lamar Odom," the statement read. "Although the evidence showed Mr. Odom had metabolized cocaine in his system while he was present in Nye County in October of 2015, he was not found in possession of cocaine and it is unlikely it could establish beyond a reasonable doubt he actually ingested, or was impaired by, the drug during the time he was within the jurisdiction of Nye County."

Odom was discovered unconscious in his room by employees at the Love Ranch South brothel in nearby Crystal at the tail end of a three-day stay on Oct. 13, and was transported to Desert View Hospital. Odom was then transferred to Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas later that evening via ambulance after his 6-foot-10-inch frame wouldn't fit in the Mercy Air helicopter, where he spent a few weeks under their care before being transported to Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, California.

Over the weekend it was reported that Odom was released from Cedars-Sinai and transferred to a private rehabilitation facility in Southern California.

Odom spent a small fortune at Love Ranch, as it was revealed that he spent $75,000 during his weekend romp. Odom's credit card company initially declined to foot the bill, but eventually released the funds.

The event shined the international media spotlight on town, bringing throngs of media outlets to Pahrump. Odom, estranged husband of Khloe Kardashian, was the most searched term on the Internet search engine Google last year.

Love Ranch owner Dennis Hof explained that he was relieved that charges weren't going to be filed against Odom, as it could send a dangerous message to others in the same position.

"I'm glad that they didn't prosecute him," Hof said. "Because I think that it would deter other people in Nye County from calling 911 when they are having an overdose situation."

Contact reporter Mick Akers at makers@pvtimes.com. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.