News briefs for Jan. 21, 2003

Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2003 | 11:04 a.m.

Man arrested in brother's shooting

A 19-year-old man was arrested by Henderson Police this morning on charges of attempted murder after his brother was shot with a shotgun at their home near Racetrack Road and Burkholder Boulevard, a spokesman said.

Officers called to a home on Skytop Drive about 3:30 a.m. to investigate a disturbance found Joshua Arrants, 18, with a gunshot wound in his chest, Officer Shane Lewis said. The shooting happened during an argument between the brothers, Lewis said.

Matthew Arrants was arrested about 8:30 a.m. He is being held in Henderson Detention Center without bail. His first court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday morning.

Joshua Arrants was listed in critical condition at University Medical Center.

Two women die in traffic accidents

Alcohol is being blamed in two deadly accidents Monday night.

About 10 p.m., a 44-year-old woman walked out of Opa Willi's Bar and Grill on Boulder Highway, started crossing the street, then lay down in the street.

A security guard told Nevada Highway Patrol troopers that he tried to get her up, but a vehicle hit her. The driver didn't stop and could face charges.

About an hour later a woman heading to a bar to meet friends lost control of her vehicle on U.S. 95 near Russell and Sunset roads. The vehicle went down an embankment and flipped, troopers said. The driver was thrown from the vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Neither victim had been identified this morning.

U.S. 95 lane closures scheduled

This week will bring several traffic lane closures on U.S. 95 near the Valley View Boulevard exit, according to the Nevada Department of Transportation.

Northbound traffic will be shifted to the southbound lanes between the on- and off-ramps from 9 p.m to 5 a.m. tonight and Wednesday.

The construction work is to create three traffic lanes in each direction at the Valley View bridge between the on- and off-ramps.

Several traffic lanes will also be closed near Decatur and Valley View boulevards during February.

The closures will will affect lanes in both directions during the evening and early morning hours Sundays through Thursdays as road construction continues in that area.

New PUC general counsel named

Richard Hinckley, former general counsel for Nevada Power Co., has been named general counsel of the state Public Utilities Commission.

Hinckley has been staff counsel for the PUC since 2000. Before that he worked for 14 years with Nevada Power in Las Vegas.

PUC Chairman Don Soderberg said Hinckley will move to his new position when the commission concludes its consideration of the deferred energy rate case of Nevada Power Co. this spring.

Hinckley succeeds Jeff Parker, who became solicitor general.

Suspension upheld for NHP trooper

A state hearing officer has upheld the 30-day suspension of a veteran Nevada Highway Patrol trooper who took an unauthorized break and then skipped out of a restaurant without paying the bill.

Hearing Officer Pat Dolan said Trooper Anthony Dosen failed to pay his bill for three slices of pizza and a soda in a Reno restaurant.

Dosen has been a patrolman since 1989 and has been cited for his valor.

Dosen agreed he had violated policy by taking a break without telling dispatchers and meeting with three other officers at the restaurant.

College, high school students need shots

State and local health officials say thousands of Nevada high school and college students must be vaccinated for tetanus and diphtheria this year or they will be barred from classes.

More than 20,000 high school students have not been immunized against the deadly diseases for the last two years because of a shortage caused when Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories stopped making the vaccine, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported.

A man killed Monday morning

in a vehicle crash on Russell Road has been identified as Kenneth Armstrong, 40, of California. The Nevada Highway Patrol said Armstrong lost control of his pickup truck while approaching Broadbent Boulevard, hit a sign and a concrete barrier and was thrown from his vehicle.