Print edition for February 12, 2002

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Petty qualifies 'borderline' 27th for Daytona 500: DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Kyle Petty, who was fastest among the 29 NASCAR Winston Cup drivers who tested at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last month, led second-round qualifying Monday for the Daytona 500.

Box score: Utah-UNLV: Percentages: FG .528, FT 1.000, 3P .176.

Attendance, spending off: Speedway Motorsports Inc., Concord, N.C., today reported earnings of $10.6 million, 25 cents a share, compared with $7.1 million, 17 cents a share, a year earlier. Results are based on revenue of $80.9 million, compared with $76.7 million last year.

Panel targets auditor rules: Jeannine Aversa; WASHINGTON -- A presidential panel on improving corporate financial disclosure in the wake of the Enron bankruptcy is looking at the issue of who should set accounting standards, a top Treasury official said.

Health care product planned: Salt Lake City-based Zions Bancorporation on Monday unveiled a partnership between its Zions First National Bank affiliate and MinervaHealth, a Jackson, Wyo.-based health care provider. The deal allows bank customers to finance their health care purchases through MinervaHealth's provider network by establishing special line-of-credit and deposit accounts.

Prep basketball, soccer playoff schedule: Boys Basketball

Columnist Susan Snyder: Pueblo Park presents messy issues: The sky was blue, the sun brilliant and the air snapped with the cold of desert winter. Ackman's been making this daily trek for three years. But lately, something is amiss.

Bus driver faces trial in sexual assault case: Justice of the Peace Douglas Smith ruled Monday Antonio Gomez, 25, will stand trial on charges of stopping along his route in October and sexually assaulting an Opportunity Village client who has the mental faculties of a 5-year-old.

Letter: It's safe to store waste at Yucca: It will provide jobs to many who are unemployed now and put Nevada on the map. I would not be afraid to live up there and work there. I have been there twice in the past few years and I know it's safe to store nuclear waste there.

By dawn's early light: At sunrise, the Strip takes on serene personality: Kimberley McGee; Many Las Vegans consider the Strip to be a congested attraction teeming with tourists.

Community briefs for February 12, 2002: Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area offers hikes and walks free of charge, but reservations are required for all programs, which begin at the Visitors Center. To make reservations or for information call 363-1922. Some upcoming programs:

Court briefs for February 12, 2002: A 21-year-old Las Vegas man faces life in prison after being convicted Monday in the murder of one man and the attempted murder of three others.

Unions make deals with hospitals: By Emily Richmond; Following a busy week of negotiations, a coalition representing 140,000 firefighters, police officers, teachers, Culinary workers and their families has reached deals with Sunrise and MountainView hospitals for health care.

Highlights of 2001 revenue report on Nevada casinos: AP; -STATEWIDE: $9.47 billion win in 2001, down 1.4 percent. In December, clubs won $731.8 million, down 7.6 percent.

Court upholds $1.1 million award: CARSON CITY -- The state Supreme Court has upheld a $1.1 million malpractice judgment against Valley Hospital Medical Center in the death of a Las Vegas man.

Catskill application filed: The Wisconsin-based tribe filed an application with the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs to place 333 acres of land in trust near Monticello in Sullivan County. The proposed $600 million casino in the Town of Thompson would include 3,000 slot machines and 190 gaming tables. Additional money would be spent on a planned 15-story hotel.

Editorial: Not a good time to cut road funding: Suddenly, states are complaining. Highway spending provides a vital public service and creates about 40,000 jobs for every billion dollars. A bill working its way through Congress now seeks to restore $4.4 billion to the highway budget, money that could come from the $20 billion cash balance. Nevada's lawmakers support this move as well they should. The death of the economic stimulus bill and the prospects of reduced highway construction is a double whammy.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Yucca fight won't end: What a strange question I thought as I continued to read Frank Perna's letter. Why on earth would this newspaper, the first daily newspaper in this state to challenge the federal government's scheme to bury the nation's high-level nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain and the only one to consistently rail against the thought of such an outrage in the face of significant risk, be throwing in the towel?

Letter: Yucca efforts are appreciated: This has been a political decision from the very beginning and if it wasn't for Nevada's relative political weakness at the time this crap probably wouldn't be coming here.

Attorney says murder defendant falsely accused: The evidence will show that Christopher Williams, who faces the death penalty if convicted, has been falsely accused, Deputy Public Defender Jordan Savage said during opening statements.

Letter: Administration out of control with its budget: Instead of the "leaner, meaner, more capable military" -- a "transformation" promised by President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld -- a red, white and blue $400 billion budget for "defense" has been sent to Congress!

Harrah's charters operating: The Fresno, Calif.-based air carrier will operate flights Wednesday through Monday over the next two years through its agreement with Harrah's. Arriving passengers will stay at Harrah's Casino & Hotel in Laughlin. The charter flights will use two newly acquired, 130-passenger MD-87 aircraft capable of non-stop travel to Laughlin from any city in the nation.

Immunization schedule for February 12, 2002: NORTH LAS VEGAS PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER: 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite F, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Tax task force has plenty of problems on its plate: Erin Neff; It's been just one month since the Task Force on Tax Policy met, but with each passing week the state's economic news seems to be worsening.

Finance board approves bond sale for home loans: CARSON CITY -- The state Board of Finance Monday approved issuing up to $60 million in bonds to help low and moderate-income families finance the purchases of their first homes.

Editorial: Dangers of shipping nuke waste: A fortified nuclear power plant offers a better defense than a slow-moving convoy carrying nuclear waste, a shipment that would be more susceptible to attack. Don't forget that it's estimated that it could take 30 years to send 100,000 shipments of nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, much of it cross-country, before all 77,000 tons of the nuclear waste are removed from the nuclear power plants. A videotape recently acquired by Nevada's congressional delegation, and which reporter Benjamin Grove wrote about in a copyrighted story in Sunday's Sun, throws additional doubts on the ability to protect nuclear waste from a terrorist ...

Sleepy heads: New plan for high school schedule could give teens extra hour to rest: By Emily Richmond; The alarm clock blares at 5:30 a.m. in 16-year-old Ashley Guerrero's Henderson bedroom. She fumbles in the dark for the snooze button. At 5:45 the noise once again intrudes on the Coronado High School sophomore's last, precious minutes of sleep.

Local McDonald's team enjoys its Olympic events: The most popular item at the Olympic Village McDonald's the two weeks before the Games began was the Big Mac, but ordering the fries on the side wasn't always easy.

News briefs for February 12, 2002: Keith E. Brooks, 45, is wanted in connection with five counts of robbery one count of attempted robbery and six counts of burglary all with a weapon, police said.

4-A girls basketball All-Star teams chosen: Bishop Gorman's Sheryl Krmpotich and Desert Pines' Jim Richmond were chosen as coaches of the year for the Sunset and Sunrise Region, respectively.

Gaughan gears up for Daytona: DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Like most people who were raised in a racing family, Brendan Gaughan grew up watching the Daytona 500 on television and dreaming of one day driving at the "World Center of Racing."

AG: Officials followed open-meeting law: Mathis Winkler; North Las Vegas officials followed the state's open meeting law when they recently changed the wording of agenda instructions for public comment, the state attorney general's office found.

LV doctor wins suit brought by son: Quincy E. Fortier Jr. claimed that after he watched a videotape about child molestation as part of court-ordered therapy, long "frozen memories" came to the surface about his namesake.

Rebels' Gleason picked 24th in WUSA draft: Gleason, a native of Park Ridge, Ill., was drafted in the third round by the San Jose CyberRays, the league's first champion last year.

Obituaries for February 12, 2002: Harvey Alan Axelrod, 56, of Las Vegas died Thursday in Los Angeles. He was born April 7, 1945, in Ohio. A resident for 33 years, he was a boxman at Bellagio.

Durango looking to beat the odds: Spencer Patterson; What had already been an emotional year for Durango's boys basketball team took on stunning proportions in last Friday's regular season finale.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Rebels ruin Utah's Vegas vacation: Dean Juipe; Out of school for the month and holing up in cities such as San Diego, Las Vegas and St. George for lengthy stretches of time, the men's basketball team from Utah is living every collegian's dream. It has a spring break that just won't quit.

Banks roars off bench, helps UNLV rock Utah: Steve Addy; WHAT: Florida International (10-16) at UNLV (13-8)

Rebel recap: Momentum swung toward UNLV late in second half: the numbers; First half

Sweet, Lou: Steve Addy; Lou Amundson's freshman season is over. His UNLV teammates told him so before conference play began, and he proved he's no longer a pup Monday night before a national TV audience.

Prep Girls Basketball All-Stars: All-Northeast Division

Locals can tape message to Bush: Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said that cameras will be set up on the 10th floor of City Hall at Stewart Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard South today and Wednesday.

Death penalty figures rejected: Ed Koch and Erin Neff; A second report from Columbia University on use of the death penalty faults Nevada and Clark County for errors in capital punishment cases.

Casino numbers show gradual rebound: Cy Ryan and David Strow; Nevada's gaming industry continued its downward trend in December, as the Strip posted its biggest decline in gaming win in nearly four years.

Sleepyheads: New plan for high school schedule could give teens extra hour at home: By Emily Richmond; The alarm clock blares at 5:30 a.m. in 16-year-old Ashley Guerrero's Henderson bedroom. She fumbles in the dark for the snooze button. At 5:45 the noise once again intrudes on the Coronado High School sophomore's last, precious minutes of sleep.

Mayor gives gaming industry earful: Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman joked that when he was asked to give an address on the record of corporate responsibility by the gaming industry to the American Gaming Summit that he could do it in about 10 seconds.

Lawyer hired in Frohlich dispute: Steve Guiremand; UNLV has enlisted the services of noted Kansas City attorney Michael Glazier, considered an expert in dealing with NCAA eligibility issues, to help oversee the school's case involving the recent suspension of star forward Linda Frohlich.

ABA team lands in LV: Victoria Sun; In an abrupt move to keep balance throughout ABA 2000, the Las Vegas Slam professional basketball team started play last Saturday night with a seven-point road loss to the Kentucky Cats.

Nuke cask strength decried: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Nuclear industry and federal tests show that a missile could blow a hole in a nuclear-waste transportation cask, potentially sending radiation into the environment, industry experts told the Sun.

Proposed sign rules to restrict size, height: Mathis Winkler; North Las Vegas won't turn pretty overnight, but city officials hope stricter regulations for business signs will help improve the town's appearance over time.

Groovin': Steve Guiremand; Ben Strack is close to earning his Ph.D. in health psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology in San Diego. But he already has a master's in the art of throwing the gopher ball.

Boy mauled in attack ready for return to normal life: Jace Radke; Michael Foley is ready to get back to being an 11-year-old boy, whose biggest decision is whether to spend Saturdays playing baseball or football.

Nevada health consumers examining body scanning: Stacy J. Willis; Minutes after Toni Alesia slid out of a $2.5 million body-scanning machine she was satisfied that she didn't have any tumors.

Police look for suspect in series of LV robberies: Keith E. Brooks, 45, is wanted in connection with five counts of robbery one count of attempted robbery and six counts of burglary all with a weapon, police said.

America West restoring some Vegas flights: The flight additions are in response to increasing customer demand, the company said.

Nevadans continue to wait on Abraham: A business news website, www.cbsmarketwatch.com, reported Monday that Abraham forwarded the recommendation to President Bush. But the Energy Department has not confirmed that. An Energy spokesman did not return phone calls to the Sun today or Monday.

Slowdown, terror take toll on LV Riviera: Revenue of $44 million was down from $49.5 million as tourism to Las Vegas slowed because of the weakening economy and the Sept. 11 terrorism.

Slot manufacturer could see buyout, chief executive says: David Strow; Yet another small slot maker appears ready to join the trend of buyouts in the gaming equipment industry.

U.S. Congress poised to address gaming issues: David Strow; Terrorism and economic stimulus might be at the top of the congressional agenda, but two familiar topics to the gaming industry -- Internet gambling and a proposed ban on college sports betting -- are waiting to emerge in 2002.

LV tortilla production to expand: The Aranda family, which also has tortilla plants in California, will open an 18,000-square-foot plant at 2912 N. Commerce St. that is expected to employ about 50.

Gamers share positive outlook on economy: Construction will resume this month on the nation's fourth-largest convention center at Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay hotel-casino, another indication that the gaming industry has confidence the nation's economic recovery is on track.

PurchasePro officials expect to post profit by spring: David Strow; After a year of heavy losses, the chief executive of PurchasePro told shareholders Monday he expects to see the Las Vegas-based e-commerce company produce a cash flow profit within the next several months.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: LV's Neverett lends voice to Olympic hockey: Tim Neverett was sitting at home last Monday, watching either "Slap Shot" or "Mystery, Alaska," (but not the forgettable "Youngblood" starring Rob Lowe) in an attempt to get a hockey fix, when his phone rang.