News briefs for Sept. 24, 2003

Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2003 | 11:24 a.m.

Nevada victim had West Nile

Nevada has recorded its first case of West Nile disease, but health officials say the victim was infected in another state. They add that the person has fully recovered.

Until now, Nevada was one of only four states in the contiguous states to be spared the mosquito-borne disease.

The officials said the person began feeling ill during the last few days of a vacation in Colorado and sought medical attention upon return to Nevada.

Since the person was infected in another state, Washoe County will report the case to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an imported one, according to District Health Officer Barbara Lee Hunt.

Colorado has reported 1,542 cases of the disease to the CDC with 27 deaths.

Trial begins in Cash Box death

A Las Vegas pit boss and former record promoter accused in the death of a country music magazine employee went on trial Tuesday, with prosecutors saying the victim was gunned down on Nashville's Music Row over a chart-fixing scheme at the magazine.

Richard D'Antonio, 56, was arrested last year and charged with first-degree murder in the 1989 slaying of Kevin Hughes, 23, who worked for the now-defunct magazine Cash Box. Hughes' job involved tracking airplay of songs on radio stations, which he used to help determine chart position.