Court briefs for November 10, 2000

Friday, Nov. 10, 2000 | 10:49 a.m.

Man to plead guilty in Stupak attack

An 80-year-old man charged with misdemeanor battery in an August attack on gambling figure Bob Stupak is expected to plead guilty Monday.

Defense attorney Andrew Leavitt told Justice of the Peace Jennifer Togliatti Thursday that R.D. Matthews has agreed to accept a deal from prosecutors.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Gary Guymon said Matthews has agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor battery and pay a $1,000 fine.

According to police reports, Stupak, 58, was dining at Piero's when Matthews grabbed Stupak by the arm and said he wanted to talk to him outside.

Stupak said that at the same time, Benny Binion Behnen, son of Horseshoe hotel-casino owner Becky Behnen, and an unnamed man began slapping him about the head and face.

Stupak said he believes the incident stemmed from a dispute over $250,000 in chips he cashed in at the Horseshoe over a year ago.

Matthews was the only person charged in the incident. Prosecutors said he was the only person they had enough evidence to obtain a conviction against because of conflicting statements given to police.

Deal reached in deadly wreck

A 22-year-old Las Vegas man took a deal Thursday in connection with a fatal car crash.

John Sandoval pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and reckless driving in the Aug. 2 crash that killed Mary Thompson, 53.

Sandoval will get seven to 20 years in prison as a result of the plea agreement.

According to authorities, police saw Sandoval driving erratically and tried to pull him over, but he sped off. Police broke off their pursuit, but Sandoval kept going and ran a stop sign at 14th Street and Stewart Ave, striking Thompson's 1994 Ford Explorer.

Under the deal, prosecutors will also dismiss three bad check cases.

Sandoval is scheduled to be sentenced by District Judge Joseph Bonaventure Dec. 6.

Man sentenced in fatal DUI crash

A 21-year-old Las Vegas man who killed his friend in a drunken driving accident in July was sentenced Thursday to almost seven years in prison.

District Judge Joseph Bon-aventure sentenced Nicholas Nava to 83 months in prison for the July 29 death of Cesar Fernandez. Nava will have to serve almost three years before he will be eligible for parole.

According to police, Nava was driving between 60 and 80 mph in a 35 mph zone when he missed a curve, ran off the road and hit a North Las Vegas light pole in the 4700 block of Mitchell Street.

Fernandez, 26, a passenger in the car, died and Nava was found at a nearby shopping center with cuts and scrapes.

Blood tests showed Nava had alcohol levels of 0.16 and 0.14 shortly after the accident.

Fire department, police sued

A Henderson resident is suing the Henderson police and fire departments, claiming he was arrested on a drunken driving charge when he had actually suffered a stroke.

According to the lawsuit, filed Thursday in District Court, Gaetano Lamarca was pulled over by a Henderson police officer on Nov. 11, 1998, after the officer noticed him driving on a flat tire near Windmill Lane and Pecos Road.

After realizing Lamarca was physically and mentally incapacitated, the officer called the fire department. Paramedics examined him and deemed him to be intoxicated.

Lamarca claims he spent 12 hours in custody without being treated. He was then taken to Desert Springs Hospital, where a doctor determined that he had had a stroke and was not under the influence of alcohol.

The DUI charge filed against him was dismissed 11 months later, the lawsuit states.

Lamarca is seeking unspecified damages for negligence.

Guilty plea in fatal shooting

A Las Vegas man pleaded guilty Thursday to second-degree murder, just one month after the slaying.

Sergio Hernandez, 22, pleaded guilty in the Oct. 6 death of Jose Vargas-Garcia and is expected to be sentenced Dec. 7 by District Judge Joseph Bonaventure.

According to police, Vargas-Garcia and some friends were in a sport utility vehicle in the parking lot of the El Potrero bar on Sahara Avenue at Maryland Parkway when a fight erupted with another group of men.

During the fight, Hernandez reportedly pulled a gun and shot Vargas-Garcia several times, killing him.

Friends of the victim caught up with Hernandez across the street and beat him with the murder weapon. After he was treated at a hospital, Hernandez was arrested and booked on a murder charge.

Citizen sues over arrest in 1998

A Las Vegas man arrested by Metro Police in November 1998 is suing the police department for poor driving.

According to a lawsuit filed Thursday in District Court, Dan Molnar was arrested on Nov. 11, 1998, and placed into a police car for the trip to the Clark County Detention Center.

Once in the car he was "subjected to frequent and sudden stops and starts causing him to strike various portions of his person against the interior of the police car," the lawsuit states.

Molnar claims the officers' actions were "intentional, wanton and calculated."

He further claims that once he arrived at the jail he was struck without provocation about the face and body.

Molnar is seeking unspecified damages.