Las Vegas Judge Sanctions Defense Attorney Over AI Misuse in Legal Filing A Las Vegas judge sanctioned defense attorney Dean Kajioka on July 30, 2026, after he admitted that artificial intelligence was used in a legal filing that contained errors. District Judge Monica Trujillo ruled that the AI-assisted document, submitted on behalf of Robert Schwieger—a suspect in the 2026 bombing of Piero’s Italian Cuisine—was improperly formatted, cited non-existent legal references, and deviated significantly from Kajioka’s prior legal work. The judge ordered $500 in sanctions, payable to the Clark County library, and struck the contested filing from the record. Kajioka’s client, Schwieger, 53, was arrested in April 2026 and faces charges including conspiracy to commit first-degree arson, first-degree arson, and using explosives to damage property. The bombing of Piero’s restaurant in 2026 caused damage primarily to the entrance, though no fatalities were reported. Kajioka’s filing, which was part of a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, included a citation to a non-existent case: “Evans v. State, 123 Nev. 117, 159 P.3d 438 (2007).” Prosecutors argued that the citation was a “hallucinated” AI-generated error, as no such case exists. Kajioka initially claimed the citation was a “typo” and that the case existed with a different citation, but later conceded that AI was used to draft the document. Chief Deputy District Attorney Eckley Keach criticized the use of AI in legal work, warning that it poses a threat to the integrity of the justice system. “AI will never understand the human cost of a criminal case,” Keach stated during the hearing. “When a defense attorney relinquishes their duties to the machine, it’s opposing counsel and the court that bear the cost.#las_vegas #dean_kajioka #monica_trujillo #robert_schwieger #piero_s_italian_cuisine
