Print edition for June 29, 1998

Trends in the news: June brides and grooms may still be unwrapping wedding gifts and nibbling on the remnants of their wedding cakes. But what do they really know about each other?

Nevada Power's Green Power program delayed a few weeks: The construction of the first solar array in Nevada Power Co.'s Green Power Option program has been delayed by a siting conflict where construction is planned.

Howard Hughes' question lingers: Do nuclear tests cause quakes: In memos from Hughes released last year by the U.S. Department of Energy, the brilliant billionaire urged the U.S. government to move nuclear weapons experiments at the Nevada Test Site, 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas, to Alaska or central Nevada.

Sidewinders 4, Stars 2 -- box scores: Las Vegas

LV bail bond company fights to keep its license: Brian Seals; All Star Bonding Inc. and four of its bail bond agents are fighting to keep their Nevada licenses, which the state wants to suspend because of complaints by customers they were improperly intimidated at gunpoint.

State tries to close down LV mortgage business: Brian Seals; To the state Division of Financial Institutions, Robert King III is like the Energizer Bunny -- he keeps going and going and going.

New Ronald McDonald House to open: Art Nadler; The Ronald McDonald House, 2323 Potosi St., is scheduled to accommodate its first family July 6.

Editorial: Feds should learn from Beatty dump: The unlined dump, which is still used for chemical waste, hasn't accepted radioactive debris since 1992. Up to that time, dump contractor US Ecology followed the law by filling the Beatty site with contaminated tools, gloves and pipes that came from commercial nuclear reactors and laboratories.

Transportation fair looks into LV's future: Diana Sahagun; These concerns were heard by members of the Regional Transportation Commission over the weekend at a RTC transportation fair at the Boulevard Mall.

Las Vegas business fast track: Christina Roush is a first vice president specializing in investments at CB Richard Ellis.

Sports briefs: Skippy leaves challenger hanging in the Gold Cup: The gray horse won the $1 million Hollywood Gold Cup on Sunday despite having plastic patches around his feet to hold his shoes on.

Panel suggests scientific review of reported UFO evidence: The nine-member group, the first independent review of UFO phenomena since 1966, found no convincing evidence that extraterrestrial intelligence was responsible for the physical evidence. But some findings remained unexplained.

Oft-criticized contractors board eyes improvements: Some homeowners have lost their life savings because of unscrupulous contractors. The majority of the complaints are generated in Las Vegas because of the construction boom.

Columnist Ralph Siraco: Skip Away, Gentlemen live up to hype at Hollywood: Ralph Siraco; When the showdown really is a showdown it becomes one of those great moments in sports.

Las Vegas business news: sgreen@lasvegassun.com; * LV CARPENTERS REJECT CONTRACT -- Members of the Southern California-Nevada Council of Carpenters voted down a contract Sunday night that would have given them a $5.83 per hour pay and benefits raise over the next four years. Union officials declined to release the final vote tally, but said the union would be back in negotiations this week. The vote means a strike could be looming as the union's contract expires at midnight Tuesday. The union had been in joint negotiations with the United Builders and Contractors, Associated General Contractors and the Nevada Contractors Association. "We'll just have to wait ...

Upcoming Las Vegas business events: Terry Lanni -- Chief Executive of MGM Grand speaks to Nevada Development Authority. Wednesday. 791-0000.

Animal-rights activists air concerns at circus: Jace Radke; The protesters said they wanted to bring attention to what they claim is the mistreatment of animals by Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus.

Ethics panel sweeps out old rules: Elected officials in Southern Nevada woke Sunday morning with tougher ethical guidelines to follow.

Vikings suitor claims to be worth $5.1 billion: Tim Graham and John Wilen; Shruti Misra, the Las Vegan trying to buy the Minnesota Vikings, claims to be worth $5.1 billion and have $2.4 billion in precious metals stored in a Las Vegas warehouse, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported Sunday.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: President's decisions in China based on sense, not politics: My good sense tells me that stepping into the middle of the war of words between the White House and its congressional critics over the president's trip to China is a no-win situation. Like most issues that have defined the political relationship between Democrats and Republicans ever since Bill Clinton was elected, the all-important relationship between the United States and China has been mired in a game of one-upsmanship rather than a real debate on long-term foreign-policy goals.

Missing daughter found; ex-wife facing charges: Today, the heartache is over.

Daryle wants to be a Singletary sensation in Nashville: Jim Patterson; But when the 27-year-old sings, a real Superman emerges to demonstrate artistic integrity and honky-tonk vocal chops that have earned him comparisons to George Jones and Merle Haggard.

Proposed military academy under fire from neighbors: Benjamin Grove; The prep school's organizers, who began planning Taps Military Academy of Higher Excellence three years ago, vow to break ground on the $28 million school as early as this year.

No Wimbledon showdown between Williams sisters: "I could have carried on if I wanted but I have to think about the future," she said. "I don't want to hurt myself over something silly and be out for maybe two months just because I didn't stop."

Letter: Anti-handicapped parking spaces letterwriter should face reality: The lifelong toning, while still visible, is irrelevant. The signals from the "upstairs control room" are prematurely ebbing, according to medical diagnosis. That's why I spent an entire yesterday exhausted from a short walk -- minus my cane, which I had forgotten -- to a supermarket ATM to sadly verify my single-digit bank balance.

NOW pushing campaign to deny re-licensing of Mike Tyson: Tyson was banned from boxing by the commission last July 9. He will be eligible to re-apply to the commission at the end of one year, although he has not indicated if or when he might do so.

Gordon wins race and regains Winston Cup lead: That's just what Jeff Gordon did Sunday when he charged from the middle of the field to win the Save Mart-Kragen 350-kilometer race on the road course at Sears Point Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.

Pirates 6, Dodgers 4: The Dodgers had a 4-1 lead and runners at the corners after Paul Konerko's one-out RBI single in the sixth chased Pirates starter Jason Schmidt. Then came a chain-reaction of events that led to a bench-clearing brawl and the ejections of Kendall and Sheffield, who was taken to the hospital with a cut left eyelid.

Rockwell cutting 3,800 jobs; spinning off Semiconductor System: In a letter to shareholders today, Davis said the transaction, subject to Internal Revenue Service ruling as a tax-free distribution, was being taken to improve the consistency of its earnings and reposition itself for future global growth.

Six die in crashes over the weekend: The latest victim was a woman killed Sunday afternoon when the car in which she was a passenger left a two-lane gravel road in the area of Mount Charleston and rolled 152 feet down the side of the mountain.

Tahoe water district discuss contaminated wells: Officials fear more wells are threatened by MTBE, a fuel additive used since 1992 to improve air emissions in California.

Letter: Too often, women use sex to lead them to marriage: Karen Hillary

Letter: Proposals would only enhance enjoyment of Mount Charleston: All valley residents who really care about Mount Charleston should drive up there and see for themselves, as my husband and I have done. What a great facility.

Sweeps rid Truckee River of homeless camps: "The landowner won't let us on his property to do anything about it," he said, adding the camps are in the Verdi area seven miles west of Reno.

Treasury Club moves inside Silver Club: Casino Management Services, which operates the small casino and the Silver Club, decided to close the Treasury Club when its rent jumped after the adjacent Sparks movie theater and parking garage opened in Victorian Square.

Tewksbury goes over McGwire to get him out: Tewksbury resorted to lobbing balls to McGwire on Sunday, and it worked. The major league home run leader could only laugh as he grounded out and popped up on the 44 mph pitches.

After 266 days, Elko finally breaks 80 degree mark: It took 266 days for the temperature to reach 80 since it fell below that level after Oct. 4, 1997.

Committee rejects bill ratifying Pala tribe pact: The deal between Gov. Pete Wilson and the Pala Band of Mission Indians has been repeatedly denounced by casino-operating tribes because it would require them to shut down their lucrative video slot machines.

Four die in weekend traffic accidents: Several of the passengers were ejected at the scene. The names of the two people killed were withheld pending notification of next of kin.

Welcome no more: Steve Guiremand; In the end, UNLV's star quarterback, Jon Denton, accomplished something that most opposing defenses failed miserably at during the last two seasons.

Teen gets house arrest for death of newborn: Adams pleaded guilty in April to felony child neglect charges for the Feb. 9 death of her baby girl, born in the bathroom in her Henderson home.

Sidewinders defeat Stars, 4-2: Fortunately for Jerry Royster and company, Sunday night's 4-2 loss to the Sidewinders wasn't viewed back home in Las Vegas.

Bang Tango appears in Vegas: The band is on its 1998 summer tour to promote its latest album, "Bang Tango, Live at the CatHouse," which is being relesed in July.

Vegas twins take on the court: Spencer Patterson; In the seven years since their father saw an ad for a free tennis clinic at Sunset Park and decided to send his two daughters, 13-year-old Henderson twins Catrina and Christian Thompson have emerged as two of the country's most promising young players.

Polio survivor sets record touring states on motorcycle: Mutchler, trying to raise awareness for a Rotary International program aimed at eliminating polio, contracted the disease as an infant and can't use his legs. But his Honda motorcycle is rigged with a stabilizing sidecar and a hand-operated gearshift.

Denton leaves UNLV: Steve Guiremand; That is, stop Jon Denton.

Reno casino executives concerned about end of bowling tournament: "It's been a boon for this property and I think for all of Reno this winter," said Ferenc Szony, president and chief executive officer at The Sands Regency Hotel Casino.

Union, contractors huddle after contract vote fails: Robert Macy; The current contract expires at midnight Tuesday and there was concern a strike could slow the city's economic boom.

Court upholds sentences in kidnap of casino executive's daughter: Kevyn Wynn, then 26, was abducted from her Las Vegas home in July 1993. She was freed unharmed several hours later after her father, Steven Wynn, chairman of Mirage Resorts Inc., paid $1.45 million that he got from the casino cage at the Mirage Hotel. Prosecutors said about $1 million was recovered.

Hikers find man's body in Brockway Summit area: Hikers find man's body in Brockway Summit area

Two counties oppose Navy's plan to acquire more land: The deadline for public comment on the proposal was Friday.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Lousy month for Las Vegas' troubled trio: Dean Juipe; But Robert Gamez (born July 21, 1968), unlike fellow Las Vegans Andre Agassi (April 29, 1970) and Jon Denton (April 24, 1977), is not a Taurus. He's a Cancer.

State leases old Fireside restaurant near Nevada Capitol: The commission will pay $6,186 for the first year. The lease will jump to $10,187 in July 1999 and go up in increments of about 3 percent each year after that.

Baker speaks positively about chance for F1 race in Las Vegas: But Tommy Baker, president of the locally based United States Grand Prix, still believes his group is on the verge of landing a coveted F1 race in Las Vegas.

Missing woman located: Delongpri apparently became disoriented while hiking, but managed to find her way out of the mountains, the Washoe County Sheriff's Office said.

Review: Stench permeates Stabbing Westward, God Lives Underwater: Geoff Carter; Gee, where were all the undercover cops that were present for the Crystal Method show a few nights back, when they could have performed a real boon to mankind?

Second teen held in shooting: Officers and paramedics found an 18-year-old girl dead on the living room floor. The victim appeared to have been shot several times. A 16-year-old female suspect was taken into custody in front of the residence.