Print edition for December 16, 2003

Resident, firefighter injured in condo fire: A pre-dawn, two-alarm fire severely damaged a two-story condominium near UNLV and sent two people, including a firefighter, to a local hospital.

Tourism commissioners scrutinize 'Sin City' label: "What happens here, stays here," says the tagline for Las Vegas' advertising campaign invented by R&R Partners and approved by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Rouse Co. buys project in Florida: Rouse Co. buys project in Florida

Officer shoots man after suicide threat: Heather Rawlyk; A Henderson Police sergeant shot a man early Sunday after the man threatened suicide and fired shots into the air from two handguns, police said.

Airport gave wings to growth of Las Vegas: As a hot and dusty town in the desert, hundreds of miles from any major city, post-World War II Las Vegas faced a real possibility of disappearing from the map if it could not drum up business.

Lighten Up?: Views differ on how much decor is appropriate for Hanukkah: Menorahs are unwrapped, dreidels are dusted. Hanukkah candy dishes are placed on the coffee table.

Ten years later, tribe's casino venture paying off: Nicholas K. Geranios; WORLEY, Idaho -- At a remote crossroads east of Spokane, Wash., the Coeur d'Alene Tribe of Indians has taken control of its economic destiny.

Editorial: Investigate Halliburton contracts: The New York Times reported that the audit was of "deep concern" to officials in the Pentagon, which has awarded noncompetitive bidding contracts worth as much as $15.6 billion to Kellogg, Brown & Root. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., one of the leading critics of the sole-source gasoline contract, said the audit "confirms what we've known for months: Halliburton has been gouging taxpayers and the White House has been letting them get away with it. It is deplorable and we need to put an immediate end to it."

ValCom buys Lear Studios: ValCom buys Lear Studios

Educator, architect receive arts awards: Heather Rawlyk; The Nevada Arts Council named two locals among five recipients of the 24th annual Governor's Arts Awards, the state's highest honor in the arts.

Letter: Lack of outrage is appalling: Most appalling to me are the unilateral decisions by the attorney general of when constitutional protections apply and when they do not. Seems to me, either we should have these or change the constitution by amendment.

Gazlay guilty in 311 Boyz case: Erica D. Johnson; Prosecutors scored their first conviction Monday in a string of cases involving the 311 Boyz.

Pair get county's Medal of Honor: The Clark County Commission was expected to honor a pair of Las Vegas residents and exercise enthusiasts today for their work in stopping an alleged sexual assault.

Portis shouldn't miss any time: Clinton Portis' right leg injury is not as bad as first thought, tests showed Monday, and the Denver Broncos hope he'll be able to play next weekend.

Volunteers D.A.R.E. to help family with restoration of home: The officers were joined by spouses, friends and family members to make a volunteer force 68-people strong, Dec. 6-8, installing more than $30,000 in donated materials to the project.

VegasBeat -- Timothy McDarrah: Roy tragedy now involves Pink, elephant: First Pamela Anderson, now Pink.

Las Vegas aviation pioneer recalls early days of flight: For Las Vegas aviation pioneer Florence Murphy, Dec. 7, 1941, indeed was a day that would live in infamy.

Community briefs for Dec. 16, 2003: The dealerships in the Valley Auto Mall in Henderson are collecting new, unwrapped toys to benefit the Salvation Army Christmas Angel program from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.

School's split will be a boost: As a UNLV student interested in journalism, I was so disappointed with the class requirements in the Greenspun School of Communications that I chose another major, and I was the editor of the student newspaper! If journalism students, studying beyond the core curriculum required of all, may focus on learning their chosen profession, this will surely benefit both these students and the people they will eventually serve.

Sports briefs for December 16, 2003: Keith Magnuson, 56, a former defenseman and coach with the Chicago Blackhawks, died Monday in an automobile accident in suburban Toronto as he was returning from the funeral of former NHL player Keith McCreary.

Control over hazardous shipments questioned: CARSON CITY -- A Sparks assemblyman complained to his colleagues and to leaders of the Nevada Highway Patrol Monday that there is little control over the hazardous materials that are being transported across Nevada highways.

Environmentalists target Ensign: Environmental groups are targeting Sen. John Ensign in their campaign to defeat a controversial energy bill championed by the Bush administration.

Ralph Siraco's Hollywood Park selections: 1st Race -- BLACK MAGIC LADY -- Baze aboard co-owner Cerin trainee, draws good post for sprint opener, Magic for Lady is Black-type victory. NOSY TANIKELY -- Solis scales Sherman trainee, draws good box for first-year filly claimer, what's a Nosy Tanikely anyway? Value Play -- MADAM BAHRI

Relic hunter receives 37 months in prison: Jace Radke; A 45-year-old Oklahoma man was sentenced Monday to 37 months in prison and ordered to pay $102,364.40 in restitution for his part in illegally excavating Native American artifacts from protected public lands.

Obituaries for Dec. 16, 2003: Nelda Sessions Adams, 91, of Las Vegas died Sunday in Las Vegas. She was born Jan. 19, 1912, in Ogden, Utah. A resident for 74 years, she was a homemaker, a member of PEO Sisters, Desert Chorale and LDS Relief Society and a temple worker in St. George, Utah.

LV job growth will be strong: Kevin Rademacher; Employment in Southern Nevada is expected to grow by 4.1 percent in 2004 as the Las Vegas Valley continues to distance itself from the economic downturn of the past few years.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Marlins are following familiar, demented course: Dean Juipe; They're doing it, they're doing it again even after they said they wouldn't.

Station to move rink, expand Santa Fe: "The ice rink isn't a big money-maker for us -- it isn't an integral part of our business," Station Casinos spokeswoman Lesley Pittman said.

City Council has busy agenda: Sito Negron; This week's Las Vegas City Council meeting will cover everything from taking the first step toward a major public art project to allowing grocery stores to deliver booze.

Motorola names chairman: Motorola names chairman

City attorney pleads not guilty to DUI: Erica D. Johnson; David Olsen, the city attorney for Boulder City, had a blood-alcohol level that was barely over the legal limit of 0.10 when he was arrested on a drunken driving charge in September, a Clark County prosecutor told a Justice of the Peace this morning.

Tabish, Murphy plead not guilty; new trial scheduled: Erica D. Johnson; Rick Tabish and Sandy Murphy proclaimed their innocence on Monday as they prepared for an October retrial on charges that they killed casino figure Ted Binion.

Ensign describes excitement of Iraqis, U.S. soldiers: Suzanne Struglinski; Ensign, R-Nev., who returned to Washington from Iraq on Monday, said he believes Iraq should be in charge of Saddam's trial and that "if anyone ever deserved the death penalty, it would be him."

CCSN faculty wary of precedent in Cummings case: Jennifer Knight; When the Board of Regents removed John Cummings from his lobbying and administrative duties at CCSN last month it was with a provision that would allow the college to begin the process of taking away his tenure as an English professor.

Loyola Marymount halts UNLV streak at 4 games: Loyola Marymount shot 52.6 percent for the game and held off a late rally to post a 76-64 win against the UNLV women Monday night in Los Angeles. The Lady Rebels saw their four-game win streak end as they dropped to 5-2 on the season. It was LMU's school-record seventh consecutive win and improved its record to 7-1.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Buoyed by owl's flight to freedom: Historic for the owl, anyway.

Immunization schedule for Dec. 16, 2003: NORTH LAS VEGAS PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER: 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite F, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Columnist Jeff German: New trial, but same old circus: But it was the same old media circus, as District Judge Joseph Bonaventure held an hour-long hearing on live television to set an Oct. 11 date for the retrial of Murphy and Tabish on charges of killing Ted Binion in 1998.

FBI report cites fewer homicides: Seventy homicides occurred this year between January and June. Sixty-four occurred between January and June of 2002, the FBI's Uniform Crime Report says.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Joy in U.S. and Iraq: The significance of his capture and the way in which he was found cannot be understated because both tell a hopeful story about our own country and the country Saddam led to the brink of disaster. For too long the ability of the United States' intelligence services to gather reliable information on the ground has been a question without a satisfactory answer. So, even though it took a war and subsequent occupation by tens of thousands of United States' military personnel and intelligence agents, the fact remains that it was superior information from informants that led our troops to the ...

Prices fall as inflation remains subdued: The Labor Department's latest reading on the Consumer Price Index, the government's most closely watched inflation barometer, comes after consumer prices were flat in October. It marked the first decline in the CPI since April, when prices dropped by 0.3 percent.

State prison halfway house has trouble finding a home: CARSON CITY -- The process of finding a suitable Clark County location to build a halfway house for an initial total of 200 state prison inmates has run into community opposition, delaying construction.

El Salvador plans consulate in LV: By Timothy Pratt; El Salvador will open Nevada's second consulate Jan. 1 in Las Vegas, officials from that country said Monday.

Letter: Work of CCSD's music teachers truly appreciated: These cultural events have demonstrated to me that not only are our students performing at very high levels musically, but that equally important our city benefits from the numerous educators in the various music departments in the Clark County School District who work tirelessly to teach and develop the musical gifts or their students.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Don't bet on new WHA coming to town: Is it possible to announce plans for a bogus -- er, new -- professional sports league without mentioning Las Vegas as a possible franchise?

Effect of changes in Medicare unknown: CARSON CITY -- The new Medicare prescription program will have an impact on future state government budgets -- but officials said Monday they don't know if it will be a positive or a negative effect.

Porter delays trip to Iraq: Porter, a Republican from Nevada's 3rd District, is being monitored for a virus in his right ear. There has been a slight improvement in Porter's hearing since his first visit to the hospital earlier this month, Mayberry said, but would offer no other details on the illness or the congressman's progress.

Wednesday's horse racing entries: Post Time 12:30 p.m.

Prosecutor attacked in court: Erica D. Johnson; The man convicted of killing a mother of four attacked a Clark County prosecutor on Monday moments after jurors announced a guilty verdict.

Editorial: More bad judgment: We would not want the board's ill-advised action to be a reflection on Gianini, who has extensive experience as a community college president. The action, however, is certainly another reason to question the regents' decision-making. On Nov. 20 they decided to fire the former CCSN president, Ron Remington, for still-undisclosed reasons and without giving him a chance to answer their concerns. This display of impulsive, autocratic rule created a lot of unnecessary ill will among students and teachers. Now this latest decision has added fuel to the fire. There are many qualified local educators the board could have hired for ...

News briefs for Dec. 16, 2003: Las Vegas area pilots are continuing to search for a small aircraft that has been missing since a flight from Tuscon to Eugene, Ore., on Sunday, authorities said.

Middle schools see rise in drugs, violence: By Emily Richmond; Nevada middle schoolers are reporting an increase in campus activities once believed reserved for high schools -- gang activity, threats of racially motivated violence and the availability of illegal drugs, a new survey shows.

Insurer's profit grows: Premiums written in the most-recent quarter reached $90.2 million, up from $54.2 million a year ago.

Gaming briefs for Dec. 16, 2003: The Discovery Channel expects to begin production in January of a behind-the-scenes look at Green Valley Ranch Station Casino in Henderson.