Court briefs for October 24, 2000

Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2000 | 10:29 a.m.

Group sues local water authority

The Nevada Well Owners Association is suing the Southern Nevada Water Authority for failing to release the names of 10,000 well owners in the Las Vegas Valley.

Association President Ray Preston said the water authority would not release the list of well owners although it was collected using taxpayer dollars.

The water authority said the list was compiled under a legislative mandate and the owners have the right to privacy. The 1999 Legislature ordered the water authority to inventory every well in the Las Vegas Valley.

After the association requested the entire list, the water authority mailed cards to all owners, asking them if they wanted their names turned over to the well association, water authority spokesman J.C. Davis said.

About 300 well owners agreed to release their names to the association. The water authority believes the owners have the right to privacy and has refused to release the entire list, Davis said.

Trial set in crash that killed man

The trial of a woman accused of driving under the influence of drugs in a fatal car accident has been scheduled for December.

District Judge John McGroarty scheduled Diane Lynn Scott's trial for Dec. 18 after she pleaded not guilty to two counts of DUI, two counts of reckless driving and one count of involuntary manslaughter.

According to court records, Scott, 45, lost control of her vehicle on Nov. 20, 1999, while driving on Martin Luther King Boulevard, crossed into the southbound lanes and struck a car driven by Aaron Williams, 30.

Williams died and a passenger, Melody Toms, was seriously injured.

Police allege that in addition to driving at least 56 mph in a 35 mph zone, blood tests showed Scott had cocaine, Valium and morphine in her system.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Gary Booker said that if Scott is able to post $100,000 bail, she will have to remain on house arrest until her trial.

High school fight leads to litigation

A fight two years ago at Cheyenne High School has resulted in a lawsuit.

According to a lawsuit filed Monday in District Court, Scott Gulbin is suing Shelton Lavelle Malone and Malone's parents as the result of a fight he and Malone got into during lunch on Oct. 23, 1998.

Gulbin claims in his suit that he was knocked unconscious during the fight and suffered a facial fracture.

Gulbin is suing the Malones and the school district, claiming the school district failed in its duty to supervise students and enforce those rules and regulations necessary to protect students.