Print edition for September 21, 1999

Commercial Credit changes name: The company, formerly known in Las Vegas as Commercial Credit, is part of the Citigroup of companies that includes Citibank, Salomon Smith Barney and Travelers Insurance. CitiFinancial specializes in personal and home equity loans and has nearly 1,200 offices nationwide.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Robinson calms UNLV fans' fears: Dean Juipe; It was a test of sorts.

Penalty phase for serial murderer opens: District Judge John S. McGroarty denied Gallego permission to represent himself at the trial, at which punishment for the murders of two 17-year-old girls kidnapped from a mall in Citrus Heights, Calif., will be decided.

Optimistic forecast issued for LV commercial real estate market: Phil Levine; Real Estate

Merchants sell nearly $2.4 billion in goods during May: When levies collected on sales for local governments and schools are added in, the July sales tax total clim fuel. That plus quarterly tax collections from 45 estates brought in another $69 million.

Schools await test-score changes: Terry Webster; Local and state officials are waiting for CTB McGraw Hill to correct errors it made while computing Terra Nova standardized tests given during the previous school year to fourth, eighth and 10th grade students.

News briefs for September 21, 1999: Two teenagers killed in a two-car collision on State Route 159 near Blue Diamond Road Friday have been identified by the Clark County Coroner as Lindsay Menendez-Hill, 15, of Las Vegas, and Joshua Eikens, 17, of Henderson.

Obituaries for September 21, 1999: Billie Bautista, 41, of Las Vegas died Sept. 12 in Las Vegas. A lifelong resident, he was born Feb. 28, 1958, in Las Vegas.

Prescribed burning planned this week at Incline Village: It's the fifth fall in a year that the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District has attempted to fight fire with fire.

Bruce Peterson selling some shares: Bruce Peterson, retired Mikohn executive vice president and current director, filed documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission to sell 50,000 shares, valued at $231,250. The sale represents about 3 percent of Peterson's last reported stake in the company.

Columnist John Katsilometes: If you can't beat 'em, root for 'em: For the estate of Frank Sinatra, the show must go on. The show in question is the popular tribute "The Rat Pack Is Back" at the Desert Inn.

LVCVA to share convention leads on intranet: The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is developing an intranet site that will notify hotel properties immediately when the agency gets a lead for a convention or special event.

Letter: There are other ways to get water: A second way of finding water reserves is for SNWA to have greater focus on agricultural water conservation. My educated guess is less than $1 out of every $10,000 in SNWA's budget goes for farm conservation. Yet farms probably still consume over 10 times as much Lake Mead water as the entire state of Nevada.

Hoopla and hype helped trip up Rebels: Steve Guiremand; Nobody's perfect, but for two games UNLV quarterback Jason Vaughan wasn't far from it.

Henderson Home News co-founder Zenoff dies: By Kristen Peterson; Delores Zenoff, co-founder of the Henderson Home News, died Wednesday at Boulder City Hospital. She was 85.

Community news briefs for September 21, 1999: Parents throughout the valley are encouraged to walk their children to and from school to learn the safest route.

Genesis of DMV system: Chaos: In the book of Genesis, God created order out of chaos.

Columnist Oscar B. Goodman: Las Vegas will feel pain of HUD budget cuts: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ..." So goes the beginning of Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities." The same may be said for the United States today. This is a time of unprecedented national prosperity. Now is the best opportunity to give our less fortunate neighbors a helping hand. The stock market is hitting record highs and unemployment is near an all-time low, and still Congress passes a federal budget cut in which the Department of Housing and Urban Development programs face massive cuts under the discretionary spending caps implemented as part ...

Editorial: Animosity, power play over Metro: So why, then, would Las Vegas City Councilman Michael McDonald desire to have the city break away from Metro Police and create its own police department? The reasons for this appear to be both political and personal. Even though he isn't the mayor, political observers believe the 34-year-old is the kingmaker at City Hall. Along with his influence over elected officials, McDonald has been making sure his friends and political associates get coveted government jobs on the city's payroll. Adding another fiefdom, such as the establishment of a new city police department, would be a natural progression for McDonald's passion ...

Boeing to develop larger plane: SEATTLE -- Boeing Co. is likely to proceed with development of a larger 747 jumbo jet in the next couple of years, chairman Phil Condit says.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Third and long for AG: IT IS THE THIRD TIME for the attorney general's office. And there is nothing charming about it.

Canadian tokens found in U.S. casino: DETROIT -- Tokens from Casino Windsor are starting to pop up in slot machines at the new MGM Grand Detroit Casino, despite regulations barring the practice.

Barricaded man holds back cops: Metro Police closed off a portion of Rainbow Boulevard in southwest Las Vegas and a large apartment complex early today in a standoff with an armed man who already had fired shots at one motorist.

Young jury continues deliberations: Bill Gang; Convicted quadruple killer Terrell Cochise Young was proclaimed "the worst of the worst" by prosecutors who asked the District Court jury that convicted him a week ago to punish him with the death penalty.

Long lines continue as DMV fires up new system: Jace Radke and Susan Snyder; Hours

Wednesday at Belmont Park: 1st race 1 mi & 1 fur 3YO & up Turf Alw: 1 a-College Point (Samyn) 119; 2 Whitney's Legacy (Davis) 119; 3 Conflagration (Espinoza) 116; 4 Slewster (Smith) 116; 5 Wapo (Chavez) 119; 6 Wecanbeheroes (Lovato) 114; 7 Cozzeebaba (Prado) 116; 8 Watrals Gentleman (Luzzi) 119; 9 Indian Style (Gryder) 119; 10 Cosmic Care (Bailey) 114.

Texas firm pays $63 mil. for stake in Vegas plants: Salt Lake City-based Bonneville owns a 50 percent stake in an 85-megawatt power plant near Las Vegas that can produce enough electricity to light 85,000 homes.

Nevada AFL-CIO plans to stage Wal-Mart boycott: David Strow; The Nevada AFL-CIO endorsed a total boycott of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Monday, a move aimed at keeping one of every five Nevadans out of the massive retailer's stores.

Keller can't understand deconsolidation talk: Erin Neff; Las Vegas City Council members say a move to break away from Metro Police is primarily about accountability.

Schmidt promises to keep his team together: Among the many reasons Sam Schmidt gives for his success this year on the Indy Racing League circuit is the amount of time he has to concentrate solely on driving after owning his own team the past two seasons.

Craftsman Truck Orleans 250 entries: Craftsman Truck Orleans 250 entries

Reno civil rights legend Bertha Woodard dies: Woodard petitioned the Reno City Council in 1959 to lift a ban on minorities in local casinos and helped lead an effort to remove signs from Reno stores that read, "No Indians, Negroes or Dogs."

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Speedway officials should instigate a big cover-up: It's a lock that when the Indy Racing League rolls into town for Sunday's Vegas.com 500 there will be more empty seats than at a Metallica concert during a Shriners convention.

Las Vegas Sun/ Las Vegas 1 poll: Yes: 66.6 percent No: 13.7 percent Neutral: 17 percent Don't Know: 2.2 percent Refused to answer: 0.5 percent

Group raises awareness of post-polio syndrome: While the word "polio" still causes many older Americans to shudder at the very thought of how crippling the disease was for children during the 1940s and '50s, the term "post polio" today often is greeted with "what?"

Housing panel hears pigeon-trapping pitch: Martin Kuz; The use of poison to thin pigeon flocks at the city's affordable housing complexes soon could become a policy of the past for the Las Vegas Housing Authority.

Letter: Spanish-speaking people should learn English in U.S.: I chose to come here. I have to speak English and I don't have a problem with that. Why can't the Spanish people learn English? Are they any better than the rest of us?

Box score: Charlotte 6, Vancouver 5: E -- Espada, Ball, Ortiz, Chavez, Hollins. DP -- Charlotte 1. LOB -- Vancouver 8 Charlotte 12. 2B -- Liefer. HR _- Vaz. SF -- Raven, Liefer. sB -- Espada, Brito.

Editorial: Day trading needs judicious oversight: While this growing industry should be better regulated, the federal government should be careful not to overreact. If people want to invest through day trading, then they should be allowed to do so. Every day people lose money by investing in stocks and that includes longtime professionals. Still, day-trading firms need to be regulated so they're not taking advantage of customers through deceptive marketing or allowing investors to make trades beyond federal rules that limit the amount of money that can be borrowed to buy stocks.

Residents support Metro review board: An overwhelming majority of local residents support the formation of an independent board to investigate complaints against Metro Police, a concept that is close to reality.

Lawmakers hear more gripes about DMV computer delays: Brendan Riley; A panel that reports to the Legislature's Interim Finance Committee was told Monday of long delays in getting vehicle title changes, registration renewals and other paperwork that car owners and sellers must have.

Guinn promises hard-hitting review; state agencies to be scrutinized: Kenny Guinn's top-to-bottom review of state government formally started Tuesday as a steering panel for the daunting project held off the state Budget Division.

Letter: Cruelty to birds is unacceptable: There are other ways to control birds. But pest control companies kill for money. They scare people into believing pigeons -- an ancient bird who has been around forever and done wonderful things for humanity -- are disease carriers and thought of as "rats." They carry no more diseases than dogs or cats or people do!

Gold Coast 150 entry list: Gold Coast 150 entry list

Charlotte storms back to win Game 1: Matt O'Brien; The home team had a dramatic, come-from-behind victory Monday night at Cashman Field. Unfortunately for local baseball enthusiasts, it wasn't the Las Vegas Stars.

Police official tabbed as gaming regulator: ATLANTIC CITY -- New Jersey Gov. Christine Whitman announced Monday that she will nominate the acting superintendent of the New Jersey State Police to fill a vacancy on the Casino Control Commission.

Ralph Siraco's notes: The Rahy offspring finished first in the $1 million Atto Mile at Woodbine on Sunday, only to have his number taken down when his rider, Pat Day, mistakenly hit another horse in the head with his whip that caused the horse, Jim and Tonic, a placing.

Shareholders sue in LV to block Herbalife deal: Grace Leong; Two shareholders of Herbalife International Inc. sued the company in Clark County District Court in hopes of blocking a plan to retire its public stock and take it private, saying the deal undervalues their stock.

Attorney seeks more sanctions vs. Del Papa: A district judge has been asked to impose more than $36,000 in sanctions against Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa and her office for stonewalling efforts to uncover a secret intelligence investigation of top gaming regulators.

Designer shops open on LV Strip: These two designer brands complement the 50-plus boutiques and retail shops presently open at the Venetian-themed mall.

Sing a Song of Broadway: The Great White Way is in need of a musical hit: Michael Kuchwara; Actually, one might be enough, preferably a hit as big as "The Lion King," the Disney extravaganza of nearly two years ago that raised the visibility of New York theater and helped contribute to the revitalization of a still rebounding Times Square.

Law gets murky as gaming grows: Rick Alm; Industry lines are starting to blur as legalized gambling spreads.

Oil merger talks rumored: BARTLESVILLE, Okla. -- Phillips Petroleum Co. shares rose as much as 6.5 percent Monday amid expectations that talks with Chevron Corp. may result in Phillips selling assets to or combining businesses with its larger rival.

Wednesday at Bay Meadows: 1st race 6 fur 3YO Fil Mdn Clm: 1 Salty Looker (Landeros) 107; 2 Weeping Star (Warren) 117; 3 Angel of Harlem (Schvaneveldt) 117; 4 Elegant Event (Gonzalez) 117; 5 Ballet Lesson (Carr) 117; 6 Regal D Lish (Alvarado) 117.

NJ hearings to probe casino operator: The hearing begins today and continues through Thursday. Park Place Chairman Arthur Goldberg is scheduled to testify.

Convicted serial killer rebukes court-appointed attorneys: In addition to denying Gallego's motion to represent himself, McGroarty also rejected a second motion to fire Nevada State Public Defender Steven McGuire and Robert Dolan of the defender's Winnemucca regional office.

Judge set to rule on police union facility: Adrienne Packer; Homeowners fighting to preserve their rural community should learn Thursday whether an unwelcome neighbor is permitted to move in when a Clark County district judge submits his written ruling on a controversial zone change.