Court briefs for June 27, 2001

Wednesday, June 27, 2001 | 10:14 a.m.

Witness unsure in murder case

A murder charge has been dismissed against one of several men accused of shooting a rival gang member to death in March.

Deputy District Attorney Melisa De La Garza said she asked that the charges against Antwan Graves be dismissed because the only witness who has come forward can't be sure Graves, 21, was among the men who killed Joseph "Doughboy" Williams, 26.

The witness, Pamela Neal, originally told police that Graves, Ashley Bennett, 27, Louis Matthews, 19, Lailoni Morrison, 21, Jermaine Webb, 16, and Anthony Gantt, 16, shot Williams repeatedly at the Buena Vista Apartments on Morton Avenue in North Las Vegas.

Neal has since changed her mind, saying she isn't sure Matthews, Webb and Graves were involved in the incident.

The charges against Matthews and Webb were dismissed June 5 during their preliminary hearing and the charges against Graves were dismissed Tuesday when De La Garza announced she wasn't going to present the case against him to a grand jury.

Woman, 64, given probation

Margie Gray, 64, was placed on three years' probation Tuesday after she pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor of conspiracy to commit reckless driving in the death of a pedestrian last year.

Gary Wayne Campbell, 38, was killed as he was walking on Boulder Highway near Tropicana Avenue July 25.

Defense attorney Jack Howard said Gray left the scene, not knowing it was a pedestrian she had hit. The next day, after reading the newspaper, Gray made arrangements through her attorneys to turn herself in.

Authorities believe Campbell may have contributed to the accident because of his location and because blood tests revealed he had amphetamine, methamphetamine and marijuana in his system.

Those facts, along with the fact no one could place Gray in the vehicle at the time of the accident, prompted the district attorney's office to offer Gray a deal, Chief Deputy District Attorney Mary Brown said.

Former teacher on 3 years' probation

Dylena Pierce, a former Silverado High School teacher, who made false bomb threats at the school last fall, was placed on three years' probation Tuesday.

Should Pierce violate the terms of her probation, she would have to spend six months in jail under the terms of the plea agreement she entered in April.

Defense attorney William Terry said Pierce resigned from the school and agreed not to teach children while on probation. She also agreed to continue receiving mental health counseling.

Murder defendant to remain free

District Judge Mark Gibbons Tuesday decided not to revoke the bail of Alfred Centofanti III, who is accused of killing his former wife last year.

Prosecutors had sought to have Centofanti re-arrested because he sold a home he owned with his former wife and then used the money to secure his bail.

Gibbons last week ordered Centofanti to repay the estate half of what he made on the sale. He then decided not to revoke Centofanti's bail because he complied with the order.

Centofanti is charged with shooting Virginia Centofanti, 25, between five and seven times when she came to pick up their 4-month-old son for a visit on Dec. 20.

Gibbons also scheduled Centofanti's trial for Oct. 1.

Jason Robert Rader, 30,

was sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of his roommate March 26. Jeffrey Bolte, 18, was shot in the stomach with a shotgun in what Chief Deputy District Attorney Frank Coumou said was a dispute over drugs.