Local news briefs for March 27, 2000

Monday, March 27, 2000 | 11:11 a.m.

1 killed, 1 injured in car accident

A 10-year-old boy was killed when the car he was riding in made an abrupt lane change Saturday night, sending it spinning out of control and into a light pole.

A 20-year-old pregnant woman was driving a 1989 Mazda south in the 3200 block of North Pecos Road with five children ages 8 to 17 inside when she made the lane change, North Las Vegas Police said.

The Mazda slid off the roadway, with the back end plowing through a light pole before the car came to a stop in the parking lot of the Cheyenne Sports Complex.

The driver and three of the children were taken to University Medical Center, where 10-year-old Marquise Thomas died from his injuries.

An 8-year-old boy remained in critical condition at the hospital this morning, while the driver and the other child taken to the hospital were discharged by Sunday.

Witnesses told police that the driver of the Mazda had been in a domestic dispute with her boyfriend and may have been chasing him at the time of the accident.

High speed and aggressive driving appear to be contributing factors in the accident, police said.

Driver loses control, kills 7-year old

A 7-year-old boy was killed Saturday afternoon when the driver of an all-terrain vehicle lost control and hit him.

Alejandro Vargas-Montano was rushed to Lake Mead Hospital at 2:45 p.m. after he was hit by the ATV, but died shortly after arriving, Metro Police said.

Vargas-Montano was among a group of people that was getting ready to ride ATVs in a desert area near the Apex exit of Interstate 15 when Fernando Montano, 28, lost control of the vehicle and hit the 7-year-old.

Police believe that Montano was warming up the 1980 Honda ATV by driving it in a circle when he lost control.

Homicide may have been self-defense

An early Friday morning homicide that appears to have been in self-defense will be submitted to the Clark County District Attorney's office for review.

Shortly after midnight Friday a 52-year-old man left his apartment in the 100 block of South Martin Luther King Boulevard with a friend and was confronted by a neighbor in the parking lot, Metro Police said.

The 52-year-old was reportedly hit and threatened by the neighbor, and told police that he believed the neighbor was attempting to pull a gun on him.

The man pulled his own revolver and fired three times, hitting and killing the neighbor, police said.

The two men knew each other, but it is unclear what prompted the initial confrontation, homicide Lt. Wayne Petersen said.

Police officers to be commended

Sheriff Jerry Keller will present commendations Wednesday to 11 Metro Police officers for their efforts.

Among those to be honored is Dennis Devitte, an officer who fired on a masked gunmen after he entered a sports bar and began shooting in December.

Devitte was shot eight times, and Emilio Rodriguez, 19, was shot and killed by Devitte at Mr. D's Sports Bar, 1810 S. Rainbow Blvd, on Dec. 5.

Three other men police believe were accomplices of Rodriguez in the attempted robbery got away. A Clark County Coroner's inquest ruled Devitte was justified in his actions at the bar.

A Purple Heart and Medal of Valor will be given to Devitte at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the department's personnel bureau, 101 Convention Center Drive.

ATF traces Water Authority bomb

Henderson Police and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms are still investigating the origins of a bomb found near the building site of the City of Henderson's Water Authority project.

About 10:30 a.m. on Friday police got a report of a strange device near the work site off Pabco Road and called out the Las Vegas Fire Department bomb squad. The bomb was detonated by explosives experts, causing no damage to property or any injuries.