News briefs for August 18, 2004

Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2004 | 9:21 a.m.

Body of burned woman found

The body of a severely burned woman was found Tuesday by a construction worker at the site of a new housing development near Boulder Highway, Sgt. Rocky Alby of Metro's homicide division said.

The crews discovered the body about 6 a.m. in the middle of a dirt road near Russell Road and Broadbent Boulevard, just west of Sam Boyd Stadium.

An autopsy on the body was scheduled for today to determine the cause and manner of the woman's death. Coroner's office officials had not yet determined her identity this morning.

Alby said this morning it wasn't clear if the woman was alive or dead when someone poured a flammable substance on her.

The police were unable to determine what clothes the woman was wearing, if any, Alby said. They also could not determine the woman's race, he added.

Anyone with information about the woman should call Crime Stoppers at 385-5555 or the homicide section at 229-3521.

State Democrats cite Kerry boost

Supporters of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry held a press conference Tuesday to tout the momentum they say they have in Nevada, especially after their candidate's two-day visit to the state last week.

Anne Sheridan, state director of the Kerry-Edwards campaign, said the campaign signed up 1,022 volunteers last week and estimated that more than 15,000 people got to see and hear Kerry in person.

"Kerry answered questions from regular people about what they cared about on every issue for several hours," Sheridan said, pointing out that President Bush, who also visited the state last week, was in town for two hours and did not take questions from residents or reporters.

The campaign signed up another 200 veterans for Kerry, she said. Volunteers will be recruited to work phone banks, become precinct captains and talk to their neighbors.

The state's registration numbers have flipped to give Democrats a 747-voter edge and Kerry has closed the gap in polls from an 11-point deficit in March to a statistical dead heat, Sheridan said.

"We think we're on the right track," she said.

Store fined for selling flea collar

A Las Vegas discount store was fined $4,400 after it was accused of selling flea and tick collars containing a chemical the Environmental Protection Agency ordered pulled from the market as a danger to children.

The EPA in 2002 banned the sale of "Tiny Tiger" cat collars containing the pesticide chlorpyrifos, said Laura Gentile, a spokeswoman for the agency in San Francisco.

In March 2003 the Nevada Department of Agriculture reported finding the collars for sale at a Greenbacks store in Las Vegas, Gentile said.

The company, later purchased by Dollar Tree Stores, admitted no wrongdoing in Monday's settlement of the civil complaint.