Letter: Newspaper has responsibility to be accurate

Thursday, Dec. 23, 1999 | 9:30 a.m.

Of greatest concern are two articles which were written by Jeff German and published on Nov. 4, 1999, and Nov. 7, 1999. The articles wrongly attempt to connect me with murder suspect Rick Tabish. The Nov. 4 article states in paragraph 16 that "Metro homicide detectives probing Binion's murder uncovered a connection between Tabish and Rizzolo." The Nov. 7 article states in paragraph 16: "It turns out that Rizzolo is also close to Tabish, the 34-year-old son of a prominent Missoula, Mont., businessman."

The only connection between Mr. Tabish and myself is that Mr. Tabish apparently patronized the Crazy Horse Too, a Nevada corporation which I own a controlling interest in. I am in no way "close" to Rick Tabish. Hundreds of thousands of people, apparently including Mr. Tabish, patronize Crazy Horse Too. The Nov. 4 article states that Mr. Tabish has VIP privileges at Crazy Horse Too. While Crazy Horse Too has a VIP room, anyone willing to pay may enter the room. There are no memberships or "privileges" handed out to anyone. The only connection between Mr. Tabish and myself was a bill from Crazy Horse Too that was found in Mr. Tabish's residence. Note that Mr. Tabish was sent a "bill," not a comp slip. This no more connects Mr. Tabish and I than a bill to Tabish from the Las Vegas Sun would connect Mr. Tabish to Brian Greenspun.

Both the Nov. 4 and Nov. 7 articles characterize me as a business associate of Joseph Cusumano. Indeed Mr. Cusumano was a close friend for many years. However I do not even associate with him anymore, let alone do any business with him. I have made an effort for many years now to make it clear to all that I have no dealings with Mr. Cusumano, business or otherwise. And I have no intention of having any business dealings with Mr. Cusumano in the future. Any reasonable inquiry would have shown this. I consider Mr. German's articles to be highly misleading and anyone reading the articles would incorrectly believe that I have substantial business dealings with Mr. Cusumano.

In the future I would ask that you contact me before publishing an article accusing me of consorting with accused murderers or members of the "black book." The public places great trust in your newspaper to tell the truth. You owe it to your readers to fully investigate accusations before they are printed.

RICK RIZZOLO