Nye County DA investigator arrested in Pahrump on DUI, firearm suspicion

A Nye County district attorney investigator was arrested in Pahrump after a passenger in his pickup truck told police he was too drunk to drive, and a sergeant found an off-duty firearm on him. The arrest of Chad Whelan, who works in the county office that prosecutes criminal cases, landed squarely inside the justice system he helped represent.

The Nye County Sheriff’s Office report says the stop began after the passenger alerted police. A sergeant spotted the truck, pulled it over and smelled alcohol coming from Whelan, who admitted he had drunk two beers and said he had his firearm on his hip. Deputies removed the gun before Whelan stepped out of the vehicle and performed standardized field sobriety tests and a preliminary breath test. Whelan also told the sergeant he had an astigmatism and a blown-out knee, which he said could affect his performance on the tests. The report says the passenger later texted a friend that Whelan was swerving and had consumed two double whiskey and cokes.

Whelan was booked at the Nye County Detention Center and released on cash bail on June 15. His arraignment is scheduled for September in Pahrump Justice Court. The case is being watched closely because it involves a county investigator rather than an ordinary driver, and because Nevada law makes it unlawful to possess a firearm while under the influence of alcohol or other intoxicants. DUI cases are handled under Chapter 484C of the Nevada Revised Statutes.

Whelan is listed in Nye County’s online Pahrump office staff directory as an investigator in the district attorney’s office. County records show the office prosecutes criminal cases and also serves as legal counsel for Nye County government and its officers, a dual role that makes any arrest of one of its own employees especially sensitive. Whelan has worked for the office since early 2024 and previously served as a district court bailiff and as a detention deputy for the sheriff’s office.

The case also arrives against a backdrop of long-running tension between the sheriff’s office and the district attorney over access to law-enforcement records, including arrest reports. The sheriff’s office says its mission includes protecting life and preserving constitutional rights, a standard that now hangs over a case involving one of the county’s own investigators. Any disciplinary response, internal review or policy change will likely be measured against that public test.