Saturday PMs

Saturday, July 27, 2002 | 1:26 a.m.

Here are the top Nevada stories in sight at this hour for PMs of Saturday, July 27. If you have questions about stories, call News Editor Tom Tait in Las Vegas at (702) 382-7440. For reruns, contact the AP Service Desk at (212) 621-1595.

HEADLINES:

Nevada governor outlines plan for malpractice insurance crisis

Food safety chief backs agency in beef recall at Sparks session

Prosecutors rebut Bergna motion for new trial in Reno

State-sponsored poll shows Nevada wants to fight Yucca project

New York man involved in hoax marries twice in Nevada

Nevada's grade schools face failure under federal guidelines

Ruiz looking forward to new challenge in Vegas title fight

Champion boxer arrested in Las Vegas for unpaid traffic citations

NUCLEAR WASTE:

State-sponsored poll shows Nevada wants to fight Yucca project

LAS VEGAS - A state-sponsored poll shows that Nevadans still want to fight the Yucca Mountain Project. The poll shows about 31 percent of respondents want the state to stop its opposition in exchange for benefits while 65 percent want the state to continue to battle the repository in the courts.

BC-NV--Yucca Poll. 482 words.

STATE GOVERNMENT:

Nevada governor outlines plan for malpractice insurance crisis

LAS VEGAS - Gov. Kenny Guinn signed an order Friday convening the Nevada Legislature for a special session beginning Monday to deal with the state's medical malpractice insurance crisis. The governor outlined 11 points of a 37-page bill he will submit to legislators, saying it would make Nevada the only state in the nation with both mandatory pre-court screening for medical malpractice cases and a cap on pain-and-suffering jury awards.

BC-NV--Medical Malpractice. 725 words.

By Ken Ritter.

AP Photo.

Eds: A version is moving nationally.

CRIME AND COURTS:

Prosecutors rebut Bergna motion for new trial in Reno

RENO, Nev. - Prosecutors said there's no basis for Peter Bergna's motion for another retrial after his conviction of murdering his wife by staging a wreck off a cliff near Lake Tahoe four years ago. "Its a ridiculous claim to try to undermine a lawful, just and valid guilty verdict," Washoe County Chief Deputy District Attorney David Clifton said.

BC-NV--Bergna Motion. 680 words.

ENVIRONMENT:

Army's old Fort Ruby Ranch joins national refuge south of Elko

ELKO, Nev. - A federal land swap has resulted in the expansion of the Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge to include a historic U.S. Army fort site in White Pine County about 60 miles south of Elko. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Friday that the 1,646-acre Fort Ruby Ranch is being added to 37,632-acre refuge.

BC-NV--Fort Ruby Ranch. 260 words.

EDUCATION:

Nevada's grade schools face failure under federal guidelines

CARSON CITY, Nev. - Educators say more than half of Nevada's elementary schools could be listed next year as failing, under terms of a new federal education act.

BC-NV--Failing Schools. 281 words.

PUBLIC SAFETY:

Food safety chief backs agency in beef recall at Sparks session

SPARKS, Nev. - One week after the second largest beef recall in U.S. history, the nation's top food safety chief defended efforts by the Bush administration to ensure a safe public food supply. Elsa Murano, under secretary for food safety, denied that the U.S. Department of Agriculture was backing off a policy of zero tolerance for E. coli in raw beef or other pathogens.

BC-NV--Food Safety. 532 words.

By Sandra Chereb.

AP Photo.

AROUND THE STATE:

New York man involved in hoax may have married twice in Nevada

LAS VEGAS - Authorities know Daniel McCarthy's claim of being a heroic New York police officer buried alive Sept. 11 at the World Trade Center was bogus. Now they want to know whether he's a bigamist. McCarthy, 38, a high-rolling gambler from Brooklyn, made his now-debunked claims July 18 as he married a 45-year-old Brooklyn divorcee at a wedding chapel in a Lake Tahoe hotel-casino. Authorities are comparing two sets of marriage documents to see whether he's the same man who married a 21-year-old Staten Island, N.Y., woman a week later in Las Vegas.

BC-NV--Attacks-Fake Hero. 465 words.

By Ken Ritter.

SPORTS:

Ruiz looking forward to new challenge in Vegas title fight

LAS VEGAS - John Ruiz has fought only Evander Holyfield over the past two years. Now Ruiz is looking forward to a new challenge, facing unbeaten Kirk Johnson. "Going against Holyfield was three great fights, and now I'm just looking forward to moving on in my career, and this is my chance to do it," said Ruiz, who defends his WBA heavyweight title Saturday night. "This fight with Kirk Johnson is going to be a tough one, but I'm ready.

BC-NV--BOX--Ruiz-Johnson. 575 words.

By Ken Peters. AP Sports Writer.

Champion boxer arrested in Las Vegas for unpaid traffic citations

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.- IBF featherweight boxing champion Johnny Tapia was arrested Friday at his home in Las Vegas for failing to pay several traffic tickets, his wife said. "Johnny had gotten several tickets over the last 18 months, some were for speeding and some were for reckless driving," Teresa Tapia, the boxer's wife and manager, said Friday in a telephone interview from the couple's home in Las Vegas.

BC-NV--Tapia Arrested. 341 words.

Moving news and sports lines.

NEVADA FOCUS:

Eds: The AP's weekly news feature package Nevada Focus consists of two stories by member newspapers and one staff-written story. Most stories have photos. Here is a list of this week's Nevada Focus stories, which have moved.

Insurance crisis has pregnant women searching for doctors

LAS VEGAS - Expectant mother Donna Heavey is anxious because she has an appointment with her third obstetrician in so many months. She received a list of 22 possible doctors from her insurance company when she found out she was pregnant and only two are still delivering babies. "I didn't get my first doctor because of the malpractice insurance crisis because she's not delivering babies and it took my insurance carrier three months to find me an obstetrician," the 34-year-old Las Vegas pai gow dealer said. She's not alone. A medical malpractice crisis that's sweeping Nevada has been felt hardest in the state's southern half and by pregnant and would-be mothers who are discovering a growing shortage of OB-GYNs. The governor has called a special session of the Legislature on July 29 to address tort reform to try to stem the tide of doctors streaming out of state. Nevada isn't alone. This summer, two Pennsylvania hospitals, one Arizona hospital and a clinic in Oregon were forced to close their obstetrics units after doctors fled in the face of skyrocketing insurance premiums linked to soaring jury awards.

BC-NV-Baby Crisis. 1,200 words.

By Lisa Snedeker. Associated Press Writer.

Eds: For release weekend editions, July 27-28, and thereafter.

AP Photos.

Two years later, Nevada leukemia victims' families see sunshine

FALLON, Nev. - A lot has changed for the Rivers family since 5-year-old Sareynah Rivers was diagnosed with childhood leukemia in March 2000. "Sometimes at night when Sareynah is going to bed, she will say 'Mom, I have to take my pills,' and then she remembers that she does not have to anymore," said Carinsa Rivers, whose daughter is recovering from acute lymphocytic leukemia. Sareynah is one of 15 former or current young Fallon area residents who have been diagnosed with the life-threatening blood disease since spring 1997. News of the childhood cancer cluster first hit in July 2000 when the Lahontan Valley News broke the story. Two victims, Adam Jernee, 10, and Stephanie Sands, 21, have died. Sareynah and the 12 other children appear to be holding their own. Right now, Sareynah's family is celebrating. "She is doing really good," said Carinsa. "She finished all of her chemotherapy treatments a couple of weeks ago. She goes for a final bone marrow test in a few weeks, but after that, she is all done. Life has pretty much returned to normal." BC-NV--Leukemia Cluster. 1,000 words.

By Heather Singer and Steve F. Lyon. Lahontan Valley News.

AP Photos.

Reno land use debate mirrors controversies around West

RENO, Nev. - A petition proposing a firearms ban and limits on motorized recreation on Peavine Peak has ignited a debate among those who support the restrictions and others who fear access to a favorite spot will again be hurt by spreading development. The controversy highlights an issue for Reno and the West that is growing in complexity and intensity: How do government agencies balance the varied interests of recreational users on public lands with the varied interests of nearby residents?

BC-NV--Public Lands. 974 words.

By Mark Vanderhoff. Reno Gazette-Journal.

AP Photos.

The AP