News briefs for July 11, 2002

Thursday, July 11, 2002 | 11:14 a.m.

LV man indicted in bank robbery

A federal grand jury has indicted a Las Vegas man on bank robbery charges in connection with a July 1 robbery that netted more than $64,000.

Frances Lamont Raines is named in the indictment that alleges that he took $64,674 from employees at Colonial Bank, 4640 S. Fort Apache Road in southwest Las Vegas.

Raines allegedly used a revolver during the robbery and faces one count of armed robbery and one count of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

Sheriff bumps car at hotel

Sheriff Jerry Keller got into a minor car accident last month at a Strip hotel valet.

Keller was driving a Metro Police department car June 6 when he pulled out of a parking space in the valet of Caesars Palace about 9:30 p.m. Keller had been attending a dinner at the hotel, police said.

According to an accident report, Keller pulled forward and hit an unoccupied parked car.

A valet attendant told Keller there was no damage, police said.

Probation given on neglect charge

District Judge Donald Mosley has placed Rebecca Goodman-Yowell on two years' probation after her guilty plea to a gross misdemeanor elder neglect charge.

Goodman-Yowell was ordered to perform 16 hours a month community services during her probation period, and she will not be allowed to hold a nursing license and not be employed in any nursing facility, private home or assisted living center as a caregiver.

Tim Terry, chief of the attorney general's Medicaid Fraud Unit, said Wednesday that Goodman-Yowell provided live-in care services at a private home. She tried to treat the bedsore of a resident although this was beyond the scope of her license as a licensed practical nurse.

The treatment resulted in a complication of the bedsore and required emergency treatment and extensive hospitalization, Terry said.

Guilty plea made in asbestos case

A Las Vegas man pleaded guilty in federal court today to a violation of the Clean Air Act in connection with the asbestos abatement at the Sierra Arms Apartments in July 1998.

Michael Carbaugh admitted to U.S. District Judge Lloyd George that his company, Desert Environmental Inc., negligently released asbestos into the air, placing nearby demolition workers in danger.

Carbaugh will be scheduled for sentencing later this year, and could face up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.

The Sierra Arms Apartments, a former federal housing complex on Simmons Street between Holly Avenue and Coran Lane, was dubbed one of the nation's worst public housing complexes.

County escapes fines over Freon

Clark County escaped major fines but received an administrative order to comply with federal regulations regarding the disposal of Freon, action that ended a yearlong investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The probe was triggered by reports that refrigerant that had been removed from air-conditioning was missing or improperly handled.

Real Property Management Director Sandy Norskog said managers with her department, University Medical Center, McCarran International Airport and the Clark County Detention Center met with EPA officials before the administrative order was issued April 29.

"We discussed concerns they may have or did have and they were satisfied with the information we submitted," she said.