Las Vegas News briefs for March 12, 2001

Monday, March 12, 2001 | 11:41 a.m.

Mack delivers on free truck

Mack Trucks has given the Clark County chapter of the Salvation Army a truck to replace one for which the agency paid $34,000 but never received.

"It looks like Christmas came early this year," Salvation Army spokesman Charles Desiderio said. "It would have been a terrible loss if we didn't get our truck. We must really acknowledge the good folks at Mack for stepping up to the plate."

The incident began after the Salvation Army's 1979 dump truck went through three engines and lost the transmission. On Jan. 2 the nonprofit group gave Great Basin Trucks of Nevada a $34,000 check for a new truck. One day later -- the same day the check cleared the bank -- Great Basin Trucks filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, freezing the company's assets.

Salvation Army Controller Gary Zielinski contacted Mack officials, who offered the truck to the charity, Desiderio said.

Man sought in armed robbery

Henderson Police are seeking a suspect in a Saturday morning armed robbery at a Mail Boxes Etc. store.

The robbery occurred about 10 a.m. at the store at 1000 N. Green Valley Parkway, when a man in his mid-to-late 20s brandished a handgun and took an undisclosed amount of money.

The suspect is described as white, about 5 feet, 11 inches tall, with a thin build, shoulder-length dark hair and was unshaven, police said. He was last seen wearing a green and blue sweatshirt-like jacket and jeans.

Anyone with information about this robbery is asked to call police at 565-8933, or Secret Witness at 385-5555.

Teacher indicted on 11 counts

A Henderson teacher suspected of sexually assaulting a former student has been indicted on 11 sex-related counts -- eight felonies and three gross misdemeanors.

Police allege that Newell Earl Leavitt, 48, a teacher at Lyal Burkholder Middle School, forced the 15-year-old high school student to engage in sexual acts when she went to the school to visit her former teachers last month.

A friend of the student notified police about the incident.

Leavitt was indicted on four counts of sexual assault with a minor under 16, four counts of statutory sexual seduction, two counts of open and gross lewdness and one count of indecent exposure.

Leavitt, who has been suspended without pay, is one of five Clark County School District employees to be arrested in recent weeks for allegedly engaging in sexual misconduct with a student.

Leavitt is scheduled to be arraigned March 29.

The Rainbow Family Park

will soon have a batting cage for youth baseball. Peccole Little League has signed an agreement with the city allowing for the construction of a batting cage and outlining the responsibility of maintaining and operating the cage. The city will name the batting cage after Robby Logan Bayne, a 13-year old who died last year. Bayne is the grandson of William Peccole, for whome the league is named.