Court briefs for September 29, 2000

Friday, Sept. 29, 2000 | 10:51 a.m.

Federal judge dismisses action

A federal lawsuit filed by a man who claimed a Metro Police officer used excessive force during an arrest has been dismissed.

Craig Steven Kohl said in the 1998 lawsuit he was stopped for jaywalking on Flamingo Road, sprayed with pepper spray and handcuffed after refusing to give a police officer identification.

According to court records, Kohl told the officer that he was a "common law citizen" and therefore not bound by local statutes. Kohl twice jerked his arm away from the officer when he was grabbed, then put his hands in his pockets.

The officer had reasonable cause to believe Kohl was reaching for a weapon when he did not comply with previous demands, U.S. District Judge Lloyd George said in an order filed Thursday.

Kohl admitted to breaking the law by jaywalking and was found guilty of the misdemeanor offense and resisting arrest, George said.

Suspect ruled competent for trial

The suspect in a fatal car accident that also seriously injured a woman who had recently won the state's largest jackpot is competent to stand trial, a District Court judge said Thursday.

Clark Morse is charged in connection with the March 11 crash on Boulder Highway that killed 45-year-old Lela Anne Jay of Las Vegas. Her sister, 37-year-old Cynthia Jay-Brennan, was left paralyzed just two months after winning a $35 million slot jackpot at the Desert Inn in January.

Morse has been charged with two counts of drunken driving, one count of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of reckless driving. He also faces seven counts of leaving the scene of an accident and one count of driving on a revoked license.

Morse has a history of drunken driving convictions. His trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 6.

Additional time for condemned man

A Las Vegas man sentenced to death in July for killing his ex-wife in front of the couple's 3-year-old daughter was given additional sentences Thursday on other charges related to the murder.

Fernando Hernandez, 40, told District Judge Sally Loehrer he did not kill his ex-wife, Donna Hernandez, and blamed the Oct. 6 murder on an unidentified third person.

"I'm being accused of something I have never done and I would love to prove that," Hernandez said.

Hernandez was found guilty of first-degree murder by a jury in July, which then recommended he be sentenced to death. At the trial, prosecutors told jurors the evidence against Hernandez was overwhelming, including a statement by the couple's daughter that her father hurt her mother "real bad" and "Daddy dead Mommy."

Hernandez was also found guilty of burglary, second-degree kidnapping and sexual penetration of a dead body. Loehrer sentenced Hernandez to 72 to 180 months on the burglary and kidnapping charges. She imposed a life sentence with a minimum of 15 years on the remaining charge.

Jury says LV man is innocent

A Las Vegas man has been cleared of a murder charge filed in connection with the March 1999 killing at a Washington Avenue apartment.

Eric Adams, 25, was found innocent by a District Court jury Wednesday in the death of Kajuan Dixon.

Adams was also cleared of robbery and burglary charges.

Adams was arrested about three months after Dixon was found dead of a single gunshot in the head. Adams initially told police he was responsible for the shooting, but recanted his story at trial and told jurors he lied to police in order to avoid going to jail on an unrelated firearms charge.

Judge sentences Las Vegas couple

A Las Vegas couple accused of selling three teenage girls into sexual servitude were sentenced Thursday in District Court.

District Judge Sally Loehrer sentenced the 47-year-old man to 20 years in prison with a minimum of five years on two charges of sexual assault of a minor. The man also was sentenced to 20 years with a minimum of eight years on a charge of child abuse.

The 37-year-old woman received a sentence of between five years, eight months and 14 years, six months on a charge of child abuse.

The Sun is not naming them in order to protect the identity of the victims.

The two were charged earlier this year after a 15-year-old girl reported a friend of the family had sexually abused and taken pornographic pictures and videos of her for six years. Two other girls, ages 15 and 18, later told investigators that they were also sexually abused by the family friend for years.

The family friend, 64 years old, was charged in April with paying the couple $1,500 a month to have access to the girls. Police found more than 1,000 photographs and several pornographic videotapes depicting the girls engaged in sex acts. He pleaded guilty in July to three counts of sexual assault of a minor and one count of using a minor in the production of pornography. He was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 20 years,

Another man, a relative of the girls, has also pleaded guilty to two charges of sexually abusing them and is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 10. He faces up to 10 years on each count.

Hearing scheduled for Cuccia

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled in the fatal shooting inside a casino sports book in February.

Anthony Cuccia, 59, will appear in Justice Court Oct. 17. A judge will determine whether there is enough evidence to try him for the Feb. 7 shooting of Philip M. Greenspan.

Greenspan, 59, was shot at point-blank range inside the Stardust. Cuccia was arrested at the scene and later sent to a state mental facility in Sparks to determine whether he was competent to stand trial.

Doctors determined last week Cuccia is healthy enough to understand the charges against him and help attorneys in his defense case.