Court briefs for February 12, 2002

Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2002 | 8:55 a.m.

Killer shot at witnesses to crime

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.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Frank Coumou said Jamaar Williams shot and killed Reggie Ezill, 25, in a dispute over an unpaid debt, then shot at a handful of witnesses the next day, striking two of them.

Williams was convicted of first-degree murder, three counts of attempted murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder.

Chicago man claims false arrest

A Chicago resident has filed a lawsuit against Metro Police alleging officers caused him to be falsely arrested on sexual assault and robbery charges in September 2000.

According to the lawsuit, filed Monday in District Court, a warrant was issued for John Little's arrest despite the fact he was on a plane to Chicago at the same time two women were being robbed, battered and sexually assaulted at a Las Vegas motel.

The lawsuit states that one of the victims provided a physical description of her attacker, but then picked out a photo of Little that didn't match the description.

The police issued a warrant for Little, he was arrested in Chicago and then spent several months in the Clark County Detention Center until his flight to Chicago was confirmed.

Two men get jail time, fines

Two former Marines once accused in the 1998 slaughter of dozens of wild horses were sentenced to 39 days in jail Monday and fined $2,000 each. A third man was fined and put on probation.

District Judge Michael Griffin sent Scott Brendle, 24, and Darien Brock, 23, to jail and put them on probation for up to two years. Anthony Merlino, 23, was placed on one year's probation and fined $1,000.

All three must complete 100 hours of community service and split a $1,500 restitution charge.

Colletti loses bid to avoid prison

A former Nevada brothel madam entered a federal prison Monday after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to let her remain free on appeal, her lawyer said.

Attorney Rick Cornell of Reno said the high court rejected his last-minute petition to keep Shirley Colletti out of a minimum-security federal prison in Dublin, Calif.

Colletti is starting a 46-month sentence for her part in a money laundering scheme at the now-closed Mustang Ranch near Reno.

Murder conviction is upheld

The state Supreme Court on Mondayupheld the first-degree murder conviction of Calvin Dixon of Las Vegas, who was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years.

Dixon, who was 16 at the time of the murder, was accused in the killing of 16-year-old Daryl Crittenden in May 1998. His cousin, Marcus Dixon, then 14, was accused of being the triggerman who gunned down Crittenden and wounded another man.

Dixon's lawyers argued that Nevada's law for juvenile certification is unconstitutional because, among other things, it denies a juvenile defendant a hearing before transferring his case to the adult District Court.

Dixon also claimed that since he was not the shooter, the charges against him should have been lessened, but the court rejected that argument also.