Print edition for April 4, 2000

Testimony reveals Murphy danced topless at nightclub: Murphy, 28, and her new lover, Montana contractor Rick Tabish, are charged with killing Binion Sept. 17, 1998, and stealing his valuables.

Secret electricity meetings criticized: CARSON CITY-- The Legislative Commission told Gov. Kenny Guinn on Monday to open to the public the closed-door meetings of his task force to negotiate a settlement on deregulation of the electric industry.

Ex-brothel madam turned county commissioner sentenced to prison: Scott Sonner; U.S. District Judge Howard McKibben said he took into consideration Shirley Colletti's public service to Storey County in imposing the 46-month sentence, instead of the maximum 57 months.

Compromise guilty plea made in dancer's death: Kim Smith; One day after backing out of a plea agreement in the 1997 death of a Las Vegas singer and dancer, John Flowers this morning pleaded guilty but mentally ill.

UNLV track team hosts invitational meet: UNLV track team hosts invitational meet

Casino operator overhauls player club program: The program adds two new levels to the program "Total Platinum" and "Total Diamond." After casino players accumulate a set amount of credits on their card, they qualify for the new levels, which include a series of exclusive customer perks.

Gas prices leveling off in Nevada; West Coast sees downward trend: Scott Sonner; RENO, Nev. - Gas prices in Nevada and throughout the West Coast are on a slow downward trend after peaking two weeks ago, but another run toward $2 a gallon is likely before the end of summer.

Judge won't grant TV marriage annulment without hearing: Angie Wagner; LAS VEGAS - A judge has refused to grant TV's instant bride an instant annulment. Instead, a court hearing is set for Wednesday to determine if Darva Conger's marriage to a multimillionaire really was a fraud.

Rogich awaits council's ruling: Erin Neff; When political consultant Sig Rogich first asked for a tavern license at his old office building, a disputed surveyor's calculation delayed the request.

GES fails in second lawsuit against Adelson: The lawsuit was the second brought against Adelson's Interface Group by GES over the termination of GES' exclusive contract to provide electrical services to exhibitors at the Sands. Interface terminated this contract in 1996, but GES claimed it had the right to continue work at the center through 2004.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Snapshot of a legend: His funeral, like his life, played to a house packed with the people who helped grow Las Vegas from its earliest days and who Kenny knew as friends. They represented both a who's who from those early days and a roomful of people who just needed to say goodbye.

Kahapea reported heavy gambling wins and losses: The papers show that Kahapea reported to the Internal Revenue Service that he had about $770,000 in gambling wins and about $970,000 in losses in 1995, and about $700,000 in wins and $800,000 in losses the following year. During this time, Kahapea was being paid about $38,000 a year as a city property manager.

Spartan way of life: Steve Addy; INDIANAPOLIS -- There are worse things than having Magic Johnson as the symbol of your school's basketball success, so Michigan State has never intended to shove him into the background.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Tournament ends with a lament: Dean Juipe; Drama and suspense can't be ordered up as if on command.

Rebels golf team to play in Mexico: The tournament is scheduled for 54 holes, with 18 to be played on Friday, 27 on Saturday and the last nine on Sunday. Twelve of the nation's top teams are slated to compete, including eight of the country's top 10 teams. ESPN and ESPN2 will televise the event.

Wednesday's horse racing entries: Post Time 1 p.m.

Owner: Harrah's N.O. casino may never be profitable: Alan Sayre; History

Tabish friend takes stand: Steven Kurt Gratzer was back in Las Vegas today testifying in the Ted Binion murder trial.

Lawmakers stall utility deregulation-based rule: Brendan Riley; The Legislative Commission voted unanimously Monday to tell the state Public Utilities Commission to revise its rule on "stranded costs." The lawmakers also called for open meetings as a new rule is written over the next few months.

LV student receives Ryan Witt award: Tondra De, daughter of Gopal and Gita De of Henderson, received the $500 scholarship at a Futures Expo reception March 29. The scholarship is named for the teenage son of former Clark County School Board member Judy Witt. Ryan Witt was killed in an accident.

Monday's prep results: Eldorado 14, Clark 4: The Sundevils scored seven runs in the third and fifth innings and got two RBIs apiece from Jarrod Hamilton and Stephen Rosemeyer.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: G. Tarkanian's point guard may get life in prison: More evidence that the apples especially the bad apples don't fall far from the tree.

Letter: It's easy to see GOP's scheming: "Dubya" Bush has made this scheme part of his campaign agenda, having said in a recent TV interview, "I will get this done (privatization) because I will risk my political capital to get it done."

Ameristar Casinos expects big quarter: In the year-ago quarter, Ameristar recorded a loss of 1 cent per share. The consensus estimate for the first quarter of this year was a profit of 3 cents per share.

Judge sends jurors home for the day in Edwards case: Natalie Gott; At issue is how the trial should proceed now that co-defendant Bobby Johnson is at home recovering from quintuple heart bypass surgery that he had last week. Johnson, 54, will not be ready to return to the courtroom soon, his attorney, Pat Fanning, said.

Recycling truck backs over, kills 6-year-old Vegas boy: Jace Radke; Urgent care medical assistant Sheri Brown is used to helping people, but there was nothing she could do for a 6-year-old boy who died after a Republic Silver State recycling truck backed over him Monday evening.

Diana Ross to tour with the Supremes: "This tour will really be dedicated to all the songs from the early days," Ross told a packed news conference in Grand Central Terminal. "The reason we're doing this is for our fans."

Johnson could testify in Edwards trial from home: Natalie Gott; But before calling their first witness Monday, attorneys and U.S. District Judge Frank Polozola spent eight hours debating whether a mistrial should be declared for one of Edwards' co-defendants.

Narragansett deal with ex-casino backer hits snag: Guy Dufault, a spokesman for the tribe, accused Capital Gaming of posturing.

Wild Bunch photo auctioned for $85,000: George Watson; NEW YORK - A turn-of the century photograph of "The Wild Bunch" - an ill-advised joke that robbed the last real western gang of its anonymity - sold for $85,000 at an auction.

Lawsuit claims casino violated man's civil rights: Kim Smith; A Las Vegas resident has filed a lawsuit against the Nevada Gaming Control Board and Regent Las Vegas hotel-casino, formerly the Resort at Summerlin, claiming he was falsely imprisoned and his civil rights violated last summer.

Ralph Siraco's selections for Wednesday's races at Santa Anita: 1st Race Naughty Nacho - Espinoza aboard Baffert trainee, good post for the mile, a factor throughout. Colonial Warrior - Part of coupled entry with Big Team Spirit, draws good post, Gomez on this half of entry for trainer Canani. Value Play - Cee The Field

Expanded stock buyback set for Las Vegas grocery operator: Kroger owns Smith's Food & Drug and PriceRite stores in Las Vegas.

Power outage affects 900: The outage to streets including Vegas Drive, Washington Avenue, Michael Way and Jones Boulevard, occurred at 1:25 a.m. Power was restored to 65 percent of customers by 2:45 a.m. Power was restored by 3 a.m. to all customers, power company officials said.

Columnist Kate Maddox: Gans set to take Spelling test: Kate Maddox; Danny Gans is moving closer to seeing his real life on the little screen. His opening-night audience on Saturday included some Aaron Spelling executives. E. Duke Vincent, Spelling's right-hand man and the producer of "Beverly Hills, 90210," was in the crowd along with other television heavies.

Skaggs, Rebels look like good fit: Steve Guiremand; No regrets.

Letter: Nation needs to wake up to 'slave' labor: Do you think they are even slightly disturbed by the millions of Americans who have been put out of work by their actions? I have a friend whose son travels to the Orient. He brought back a jacket by a famous U.S. designer; she told me he paid $6 for it. This brand sells for over $70 in exclusive shops here.

Lack of vendors cancels Cashman event: A spokeswoman said a lack of vendors led to the cancellation of what was to be the inaugural event.

Trial date set for teen accused of killing dad: Kim Smith; After an attempt to have an indictment thrown out failed Monday, a November trial date was set for a teenager accused of killing his father.

Nevadans push plan for visa waivers for foreign tourists: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Congress may make it easier for international travelers to come to U.S. tourist meccas such as Las Vegas.

Suit over faulty home is settled: Diana Sahagun; After a seven-year battle with Falcon Homes over faulty construction, a settlement has allowed North Las Vegas homeowner Russ Lewis and his family to close one chapter of their lives and start another -- debt-free and on the road to becoming new homeowners.

Equinox fraud trial starts: David Strow; The federal government and eight states began laying out their case against Equinox International Corp. on Monday as a federal civil trial began against the Las Vegas network marketing company.

Geological Survey says ammonia from uranium tailings endangers fish: The 10.5 million ton pile of uranium tailings sits 750 feet from the Colorado River outside Moab in southeastern Utah. The last owner was the now-bankrupt Denver-based Atlas Corp., which posted a $6.5 million cleanup bond, a small fraction of the expected cost.

Fund-raiser to cost taxpayers $61,000: Some 75 Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officers logged an estimated $32,000 in overtime pay and Nevada Highway Patrol troopers will collect about $29,000 in overtime.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Hard to find consensus on census form: Looks like about half of Nevada's residents have returned their census forms.

Questions raised by Pope's case: Kim Smith; Is the way Nevada treats its teenage murder suspects fair? As attorneys for one boy fight for his freedom, that question weighs heavily on the minds of others.

Company posts improved quarterly results: Before one-time charges, the Lake Tahoe company earned $3.75 million, up from net income of $1.93 million in the year-ago period. The company's net revenues rose 44 percent, to $109.3 million, while cash flow increased 74 percent to $25.7 million, a record for the company.

Editorial: Don't count out census yet: yThe questions are relevant, however, and play an important role in determining the allocation of federal government funding, making sure it goes to those communities that need the aid. For instance, the Census Bureau notes that income information is used to assess poverty sta- tus and helps guide funding for social services that are distributed to local agencies. Meanwhile, knowing whether homes lack indoor plumbing provides federal and state governments with information as to which communities should be targeted for public housing assistance; health officials also use plumbing information to determine what areas might be prone to water contamination and ...

UNR campus police accused of misspending: The expenditures were made while the department was under the supervision by former UNR Police Chief Kenneth Sjoen.

Technology designed to help bring Henderson building code to life: Valerie Miller; Visual interactive code

LV Sprint customers can pay bills online: Sprint telephone customers can now pay their bills and order telecommunications products from the company's Internet site.

MegaFyte! Choose your sides in the Macs-vs.-PCs debate: Kirk Baird; Hatfields vs. McCoys.

Error fixed in highway measure: CARSON CITY -- A legislative bill-writing error that could have cost Nevada highway contractors millions of dollars in lost business has been corrected by the Legislative Commission.

Obituaries for April 4, 2000: Amanda Mae Allen, 61, of Las Vegas died Saturday in Las Vegas. She was born Oct. 3, 1938, in Stanton, Neb. A resident for 20 years, she was a retired dispatcher in the towing industry.

Alabama gambling opponents shout down Ford outside Statehouse: Bill Poovey; The chanting started after more than 100 sign-waving gambling opponents surrounded a sponsor of the Macon County video poker bill, Rep. Johnny Ford, D-Tuskegee, as he spoke to reporters.

Bolden, pioneer Las Vegas police officer, dies at 63: Services for pioneer Las Vegas police officer Larry C. Bolden will be 1 p.m. Thursday at St. James the Apostle Catholic Church, 820 H St.

Attorney general turns over documents, tapes in 'secret probe' case: Brendan Riley; The documents had been ordered released by Clark County District Judge James Mahan last month in a related case involving claims that the office expanded the probe to include top casino regulators and not just the former staffer, Ron Harris.