Las Vegas news briefs

Wednesday, Nov. 18, 1998 | 11:42 a.m.

Metro Police believe that Marc Trumble, 34, who was arrested on narcotics charges on Oct. 30, can be linked to Reed's death through the use of surveillance video and physical evidence from the Gold Strike hotel-casino.

Surveillance video shot by the hotel security cameras on Oct. 28 showed Reed and another man, who police say is Trumble, entering a room at the Gold Strike at about 4:30 p.m. About an hour later, the video shows Trumble leaving the room alone, police said.

"It's hard to get a positive ID off video, but with him already booked on another charge, it gave us the time to have the forensics evidence analyzed and get an ID," Lt. Wayne Petersen said.

Reed was found lying face down after being beaten and strangled in the room, police said.

LAWSUIT -- One of the six men charged in the execution murder of mob associate Herbert "Fat Herbie" Blitzstein has alleged in a federal court lawsuit that he was beaten by jailers at the North Las Vegas Detention Center.

Robert Panaro Sr., 56, alleged in the lawsuit filed by attorney Cal Potter, that two corrections officers beat him and slammed his head against a wall on Oct. 28 while other officers watched.

The lawsuit contends Panaro, a reputed member of the Buffalo, N.Y. mob, aggravated a prior skull fracture in the incident at the facility where the defendant has been housed since February on murder-for-hire charges.

Panaro is alleged to have authorized Blitzstein's murder. Others charged include Peter Caruso, Alfred Mauriello, Antone Davi, Richard Friedman and Stephen Cino.

UMC -- The University Medical Center Board of Trustees on Tuesday granted Humana Health Plan Inc. a month's extension on a deadline terminating UMC's contract with the health insurance company.

Humana has till Dec. 16 to resolve a dispute over the company not allowing the hospital to be part of Humana Gold Plus, its senior Medicare program.

The board decided to end hospital and primary-care physician services with Humana Health Insurance of Nevada on Aug. 18, but a required 90-day notice delayed the contract expiration date until Tuesday.

SCHOOL BOARDS -- Ruth Johnson, vice president of the Clark County School Board, has been named president-elect of the Nevada Association of School Boards.

Johnson, a trustee since 1997, will become the association's president following the fall 1999 conference. She represents District B in Clark County, the northern part of the metropolitan Las Vegas area and some rural areas of the county.

The school board association consists of 109 school board members from across the state and 11 members of the State Board of Education.

FREEWAYS -- Construction at the I-15 and I-215 interchange will force the closure of a left-turn lane to turn from northbound Las Vegas Boulevard South to northbound I-15 until Jan. 28.

This closure is necessary to accommodate workers who will be making improvements to the interchange, said Bobby Shelton, spokesman for the Clark County Department of Public Works.

"The actual length of this closure will depend on forthcoming weather conditions," Shelton said. "If paving operations go relatively uninterrupted, then this turn lane could be reopened sooner."

Drivers who normally use the turn lane will want to use an alternative route during the project, Shelton said.