Print edition for December 9, 1998

Police substation a step closer: Lisa Snedeker; Ground is slated to be broken at noon Dec. 16 on Henderson's first police substation located at 300 S. Green Valley Parkway at Benji Drive, said Police Chief Tom Burns.

Consultants propose new zoning ideas: Adrienne Packer; Discussions varied from landscaping requirements to creating new zoning such as mixed-use.

Columnist Peter Benton: New Year brings new golf course to Las Vegas: Peter Benton; Next Tuesday, Dec. 15, Southwest Golf, a subsidiary of the Billy Walters Group, will preview to the media its new 18-hole, 6,970-yard Royal Links Golf Club. The official grand opening is scheduled for Dec. 31.

Columnist Muriel Stevens: Food and catalogs, Ho! Ho! Ho!: I've had good luck ordering food gifts by mail, but I rarely try a company unknown to me during a holiday. If the product proves to be disappointing, there's no time to replace it. And sometimes friends won't tell you if the quality was not the best, so for mail order I deal only with the tried and true.

CineVegas sets the screen scene: Melissa Schorr; Beam it up, Scottie!

Injuries won't stop cowboys from competing: Bill Bowman; For cowboys at the National Finals Rodeo, it's 10 days of hard work.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: 1998 was rewarding for UNLV coach: You will have to excuse UNLV golf coach Dwaine Knight if he seems reluctant to usher in the New Year.

Man receives suspended sentence in beating death: District Judge Michael Fondi imposed the one-year suspended jail sentence on Tuesday along with three years on probation and 200 hours of community service.

FBI Releases Data on Frank Sinatra: That same year, according to a confidential federal informant, Sinatra smuggled $1 million cash into Italy for mobster Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Such tales are the stuff of The Sinatra Files, a mishmash of facts, allegations and just plain rumors.

Thursday at Hollywood: 1st race 1-1/16 mi 3YO Clm: 1 Easyrider (Kaenel) 114; 2 Love A Prince (Garcia) 114; 3 Hard (Berrio) 114; 4 Disguys Dalimit (Puglisi) 114; 5 Big Bing (Pincay) 114; 6 Mango Club (Enriquez) 114.

CineVegas fast facts: WHERE: Bally's Jubilee Theater, Huntridge Performing Arts Theatre and the Gold Coast Twin Theaters.

Vipers 2, Thunder 1: AUBURN HILLS, Mich.--Darren Banks scored 3:08 into the third period to give the Detroit Vipers (14-6-4) their fourth win in a row, 2-1 over the Las Vegas Thunder (6-14-3) Wednesday night. A Palace crowd of 7,120 saw the Vipers win their fourth straight and take over a share of first place in the Northeast Division.

Excerpts from the FBI files on Frank Sinatra: -A May 13, 1947, memo from Clyde Tolson to FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover: "I talked this afternoon to Mr. Lee Mortimer, of the New York Daily Mirror, who wanted to ask me some questions concerning Frank Sinatra. ... (He) was interested in Sinatra's arrest on a sex offense ... I merely indicated that he might secure information as to the ultimate disposition of the charge by contacting the prosecutor of the bills."

Robinson fills coaching position, meets the players: Steve Guiremand; It was a good news/bad news kind of day for new UNLV head football coach John Robinson on Tuesday.

UNLV struggles with issue of diversity: Stacy J. Willis; She was there to ask them to vote in favor of adding multicultural and international studies course requirements to the university's undergraduate core curriculum.

Columnist Paula DelGiudice: Elk plan to become public: Paula DelGiudice; The public will have its first chance to view the Lincoln County Elk Management Plan at a Friday meeting from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Lincoln County Courthouse in Pioche. The elk plan, two years in the planning, is a community-based effort to determine the future of elk in Lincoln County.

Preps: Palo Verde soccer team looks forward to new challenges: Spencer Patterson; It's hard to imagine a 48-goal season being a frustrating experience for a high school soccer player.

It's official: Tyson begins comeback next month: "Mike Tyson's the biggest act in show business," Goossen said afterward.

UNLV faculty split on wisdom of multicultural studies: Three students told the group of 34 Faculty Senate members on Tuesday that requiring two classes would be better than none at all for students facing increasingly diverse work environments upon graduation.

Relaxed Tyson ready to fight in January: Tim Graham; If Mike Tyson was worried about going back to prison, he certainly wasn't showing it.

Bowling's battle of the sexes: Walter Ray Williams readily admits he is feeling pressure to beat Carol Gianotti-Block in bowling's version of the "Battle of the Sexes" Thursday afternoon at The Orleans Bowling Center.

Survey says most citizens satisfied with city services: Erin Neff; Those are among the findings of a telephone survey of 500 city residents conducted by the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce for a committee reviewing the size of City Council and whether to increase compensation or job status of council members.

Herod, Richardson accepting their roles: Steve Carp; When Desmond Herod and Chris Richardson were seeing ample playing time at the start of the season, they should have known that UNLV coach Bill Bayno wasn't a man who broke his word.

FBI Files Dish Dirt on Sinatra: Ol' Blue Eyes, friend of the mob? There too.

Thursday at Golden Gate: 1st race 6 fur 3YO&up F&M Mdn Clm: 1 Enchanted Gold (RBaze) 116; 2 Cal Sweet (Tohill) 116; 3 Templin (Schvaneveldt) 116; 4 Dianes Song (Castro) 116; 5 Deviline (Delgadillo) 116; 6 Bonnie Vigors (Valdez) 111.

Commission okays sales tax hike: Half of the income from the hike will go toward lowering the railroad tracks through Reno. The other half is earmarked for flood control and public safety.

Thursday at Aqueduct: 1st race 1 mi 70 yards 2YO Fil Mdn Clm: 1 Always Red (Zimmerman) 112; 2 Krisard (Lopez) 119; 3 Corner The Groom (Douglas) 119; 4 Personal Fighter (Espinoza) 115; 5 Wave Of Knowledge (Pezua) 115; 6 Port Morsby (Diego) 108; 7 Soft And Cozy (Luzzi) 115; 8 Oblivious T. (Gryder) 119; 9 Free Transfer (Castillo) 115; 10 Spurred Demon (Diaz) 110.

UNLV doubles team ranked No. 1 in nation: The pair of sophomores moved up 24 spots since the preseason rankings and marked the first time Rebel tennis has boasted a number-one ranked singles player or doubles team in either the men's or women's programs. The previous high mark was No. 2, which was earned by the doubles team of Roger Pettersson and Luke Smith in 1996 and again by Smith and Tim Blenkiron in 1997 after winning the NCAA doubles championship.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Smith would finish what LVMS started: My first reaction upon learning that Bruton Smith is on the verge of purchasing Las Vegas Motor Speedway was that I would finally be presented with a real media credential on race weekend, rather than an Imperial Palace time card with my name on it.

Meeting explores Binion death: The Metro homicide team looking into Binion's mysterious Sept. 17 death met for about 90 minutes with District Attorney Stewart Bell, Coroner Ron Flud and representatives of Binion's multimillion-dollar estate, attorney Richard Wright and private detective Tom Dillard. Also present were Metro Homicide Lt. Wayne Petersen and Bill Koot, chief of the district attorney's Major Violators Unit.

UNLV linebacker earns national honor: Sunia, a redshirt, was the first freshman ever chosen as a team captain for UNLV and is the first freshman All-American in Rebel football history. He led this year's team in total tackles with 115, added two quarterback sacks, ranked third on the squad with six tackles for loss and also recovered one fumble.

Disabled woman battles RTC over denial of paratransit service: Martin Kuz; The rejection set off a volcano of emotions in Post, who suffers from a degenerative spine condition, heart disease, severe arthritis and blindness in her right eye. Her exasperation comes through loud and clear on the RTC's tape recording of the appeal hearing.

City's murder rate dropping once again despite burgeoning growth: With only 22 days left in the year, the number of killings investigated by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department stands at 117. That's a drop of 21 percent from 1997's total of 149, and a 30 percent drop from 1996, when 168 people were slain.

LVMS sale brings no comment from parties involved: All parties involved in the impending sale of Las Vegas Motor Speedway continue to refuse comment on a Sun report that O. Bruton Smith has purchased the 1,500-acre facility.

Study: Nevada children suffer: Art Nadler; "Nevada Kids Count Data Book: State Profiles of Child Well-Being" has ranked the state 34th among the rest of the country in social, economic, physical and the educational well-being of children.

Cookbooks can make enticing holiday gifts: Every great chef has a cookbook. Some are outrageously expensive for what they are; others offer quality information for moderate prices. At this time of year, bookstores have large collections of cookbooks. One could spend hours trying to make the right choices.

Sunrise Hospital workers vote for union affiliation: Art Nadler; About 5:30 a.m. today, ballot results showed that four of the hospital's five employee groups -- registered nurses, service workers, technicians and the business office -- voted in favor of the union. Only the professional workers, consisting of about 114 pharmacists, social workers and therapists, rejected union representation.

Columnist Tim Graham: Robinson brings national media attention to Rebels: Tim Graham; The first UNLV football game still is nine months away, and John Robinson hadn't even met with his players until Tuesday. He hasn't done a lick of recruiting.

Preps: Wednesday's Results -- Dec. 9: Las Vegas 88, Vo-Tech 42

Gays struggle for acceptance in Christian churches: Stacy J. Willis; They were members of Metropolitan Community Church who had been using the building at Wesley United Methodist for almost three years under an agreement with a previous pastor.

Brief: 75 jobs cut at casino: The $14 million Premier project was conducted in a remodeled section of the casino and was aimed at attracting frequent players. Jobs eliminated included hosts, member representatives, telemarketers, marketers, table games dealers and human resource positions.

Santa Fe says its Henderson casino plan is alive: John Wilen; The company also continues to plan for a new Henderson casino and is waiting for improved conditions in the bond market before trying to finance that project.

Final hurdle cleared for state's first veterans nursing home: Lisa Snedeker; Ground is slated to be broken no later than April on the $19.3 million state veterans home after receiving the go ahead from Boulder City officials.

R&R praised -- but it must compete for LVCVA advertising work: But when it came time to decide between a contract extension or putting the deal out to a competitive bid, board members opted for the option that would produce less political heat.

State to investigate threat of gas additive: Scott Reeder; The Nevada State Environmental Commission directed its staff Tuesday to research the issue of whether Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether, or MTBE, poses a potential health hazard.

Letter: County does well to change mind: Jan Storm

Metro probes foul-up that put witness in cell with defendant: "It is very rare that something like this happens because of the safeguards that are in place," Metro Police spokesman Ed Meriwether said Tuesday. "The matter is being investigated internally to prevent such future incidents."

Obituaries for December 9, 1998: He is survived by his wife, Evelyn; two sons, Tom Pugliese of Roscoe, Ill., and Joseph Pugliese of Belleville, N.J.; one daughter, Mary Meier of Littleton, Colo.; nine grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

Columnist David Broder: Symposium honors the life of the party: David Broder; Instead, the inaugural Bulen Symposium on the Indiana University-Purdue University campus was as bracing as my end-of-the day visit with L. Keith Bulen, the storied GOP power broker to whom this day was dedicated.

Brief: Nevada index rises despite problems: Brief: Nevada index rises despite problems

Judge gives securities broker another chance: Bill Gang; Robert Tretiak's license had been suspended for five years for diverting money from an initial public stock offering in his Retirement Financial Centers of America, a brokerage firm catering to senior citizens at offices close to their communities.

Editorial: Nurses' crucial role in patient recovery: While nurses play an integral role in patient recovery, they also account for one-quarter of the average hospital's work force and are its single largest labor cost, according to an Associated Press report. Unfortunately hospitals frequently have targeted nursing as an area to trim costs, sometimes seeking to hire less qualified people to perform the same tasks as nurses.

Brief: Taverns want to install video lottery machines: The Star-Ledger newspaper reported the bar group is proposing that the estimated $300 million to $500 million generated by the games annually be used to finance a free college tuition program.

Boulder City Council denies petitions against golf courses: Lisa Snedeker; City Attorney Bill Andrews told the council Tuesday night that the three petitions submitted Nov. 24 to the city clerk could not be processed because they ask for the repeal of an administrative act, rather than a legislative one.

Planners skeptical of latest locals casino project: John Wilen; Peter Trust LP, a family trust, wants to build a 200-room hotel and 15,000-square-foot casino as part of a 62-acre master planned commercial development at 701 N. Gibson Road in Henderson.

Nevadans' campaign contributions revealed: Sen. Harry Reid, who beat Ensign in the general election, enjoyed strong support from political action groups of organized labor.

Brief: European nation to allow table games: Swiss gamblers travel to nearby casinos in France, Italy, Germany or Austria to play table games. This has Swiss officials hoping to legalize those games in order to generate tax revenue.

Morros will remain as state conservation director: But Gov.-elect Kenny Guinn announced Tuesday that Morros, 62, is being reappointed to the job that pays $92,000 a year.

Brief: Tribe buys out Grand Casinos management pact: Grand said the buyout calls for it to get the management fees it would have earned through the term of the original pact. The Mille Lacs Band, which last year terminated a second pact with Grand, will take over operation of its two Minnesota casinos and has the right to continue to use the name "Grand Casino."

Letter: Hate GOP ideology, not GOP members: Neither do I think they are all racists, but they have been quick to appeal to racism for their political advantage. "The Southern Strategy," anti-immigration, anti-affirmative action, etc. They took over the South on the racial issue solely, mostly by opposing the civil rights and voting acts, and are now using affirmative action as a scapegoat to get working-class votes!

Las Vegas news briefs: ADOPTION -- The first jury trial to decide a guardianship/adoption case in Las Vegas has been delayed -- possibly for two to three months.

Little change experienced as Washoe recount continues: The changes in the votes for Reid and Ensign fluctuate as the counting proceeds. Washoe County Deputy Registrar Dan Burk said the changes so far are miniscule.

Brief: Firm building fifth LV shopping center: The company has four other developments in the Valley -- Boulder Crossing at Tropicana Ave. and Boulder Highway; Sunrise Plaza at Lake Mead Blvd. and Hollywood Blvd.; Warm Springs Plaza at Warm Springs Road and Eastern Avenue and Tropicana Lucky Centre at Tropicana Avenue and Jones Boulevard.

LVCVA moves ahead with Convention Center expansion: The board authorized LVCVA President Manuel Cortez to sign a contract with a consortium that wants to pay $50 million in prepaid rent to help build the new south hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Letter: Time will reveal truth of implants: If silicone doesn't cause disease, why have all the breast implant manufacturers, including Dow Chemical, decided to settle with their victims?

Insurance fraud ring's leader pleads guilty: Bill Gang; Romar Bilog, 38, pleaded guilty Monday to two felony counts of insurance fraud that could put him in prison for up to 12 years, although the others received probation, according to his attorney, Donald Green.

Brief: Silicon Gaming lays off workers: But after going public in 1996, the company's ambitious growth plan got hit by higher expenses and lower sales than expected, the latter due to the high cost of the Odyssey machine relative to other slot makers' products.

Editorial: Let's give 'enlibra' a chance: While solutions to environmental problems continue to elude Washington policymakers, Western governors in the past year have been seeking to find a new approach to dealing with the environment, seeking dialogue in place of diatribes. Last week the Western Governors Association wrapped up a summit of more than 250 people in an effort to find a consensus on common sense solutions to environmental problems. Most Westerners, they believe, understand a balance can be found in providing jobs and preserving the environment.

Letter: Now it's up to the judge to finish job: Nothing less than the maximum sentence should be given to this horrible monster who killed a precious, innocent baby.

Harter 'appalled' by attitude on core curriculum: Stacy J. Willis; "I intend to give a little talk at the next Faculty Senate meeting to impress upon them the importance of the core curriculum," she said. "The core curriculum is what separates a university from other colleges...I was appalled that some of the faculty don't seem to understand that."

Community briefs: Entry into the raffle is a $2 ticket, and there will be three drawings on each of the Saturdays for the toys. Drawings are scheduled for noon, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Dec. 12 and 19.

Doctors struggle to save lives of fire victims: "It doesn't look good," said Clark County Fire Department spokesman Bob Leinbach.

Oil company sues Nevada legislator: Jacobsen, R-Minden, 77, is the longest-serving member in the Nevada Legislature. First elected to the Assembly in 1963, he served there until 1978 when he was elected to the Senate.

Columnist Elizabeth Foyt: Having a ball in Byzantine fashion: Elizabeth Foyt; Opening festivities included a hosted cocktail reception atop Polo Towers, where the 19th story view of our famed Strip bedazzled guests, including Grace Carvajal Lizano, Puerto Rico's consul general to the United States, Vladimir Grounne, president of the Russian Film Industry, musical composer Irma Morillo and George and Marianne Wentworth. Stephen Cloobeck and his ever-lovely bride, Chantal, greeted their guests, who also included Carol Lee and Edward Swindle, Lola Falana, Dr. Loring Jacobs and designer Yuki Yao, whose designs were showcased during the evening by models including Mrs. USA, Michele Berk.