News briefs for Sept. 4, 2002

Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2002 | 9:14 a.m.

High court denies appeal by killer

The Nevada Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected an appeal of Patrick H. Randle, sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 1994 murder of a Canadian tourist at Sam's Town RV Park.

Randle claimed his attorney was ineffective and that he was entitled to a new trial because of jury misconduct. He complained that a juror wrote a letter expressing his condolences to the victim and brought a Bible into deliberations.

The court said the misconduct of the juror was not egregious and that the evidence against Randle was overwhelming.

Environmental bank ordinance unveiled

The Clark County Commission on Tuesday introduced an ordinance that would establish a "wetlands mitigation bank" that would help developers meet federal environmental requirements and enhance local wetland habitats.

Under federal law developers are required to replace wetlands lost due to construction. The bank would allow developers to replace lost habitats in concert with the county.

The Clark County Wetlands Park, a marshy area created by the Las Vegas Wash, would benefit from the bank, county parks staff members said.

Targeting the wetlands park for more acreage would provide "higher quality wildlife habitat, increased biological diversity, improvements to water quality and better management practices," the staff's report said.

A public hearing was set for 10 a.m. Sept. 17 on the ordinance.

Cleanup failure prompts fines

The owner of a defunct and illegal composting facility was ordered Tuesday to pay criminal and civil penalties or face jail time.

Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Tony Abbatangelo ordered Jerry Finney Sr. to pay a $1,000 criminal fine and a $2,500 civil penalty by Feb. 28 or serve a 60-day jail sentence.

Abbatangelo found that although Finney had paid an earlier $10,000 fine and stopped operating the construction-debris composting facility more than a year ago, he had failed to clean up the property on Betty Lane, near Nellis Boulevard and Cheyenne Avenue.

Glenn Savage, an environmental health supervisor with the Clark County Health District, said property owner Henry Sanchez has agreed to clean up the property.

Holiday saturated with DUI tickets

Labor Day weekend traffic enforcement efforts resulted in 14 driving-under-the-influence arrests and 381 citations for traffic offenses in Las Vegas, according to Metro Police.

A DUI saturation effort on Saturday from Charleston Boulevard to Sahara Avenue and Eastern Avenue to Nellis Boulevard, netted 117 citations and eight DUI arrests, Lt. Vincent Cannito said.

A DUI checkpoint on Sunday at Sahara and Boulder Highway resulted in six DUI arrests.

Traffic enforcement between Eastern and Paradise Road and Sunset Avenue and Windmill Road resulted in 265 citations for traffic offenses.

In North Las Vegas, officers issued 149 traffic violations, seven seat belt violations, two failure to restrain children tickets and one DUI, said Sgt. J.L. Hamilton of the North Las Vegas Police Traffic Bureau.