Print edition for December 7, 2004

Vegas draws top names in music for Billboard awards: Spencer Patterson; "What we saw was a fresh audience, as well as an attractive environment for celebrities," Bain, the shows executive producer, said.

Reid to drop four committee seats: WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., will drop four committee assignments next year, including his seat on the Environment and Public Works Committee, where he was a top-ranking Democrat.

Keynote speakers named for Preview Las Vegas: The Jan. 27 economic forecasting event will be held at Thomas & Mack Center and also will include presentations from Rossi Ralenkotter, chief executive of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; Keith Schwer, director of the UNLV Center for Business and Economic Research; and Richard Lee, vice president of First American Title Co. of Nevada.

Workers say defunct firm reneged on wage promise: Alana Roberts; About 20 former security guards are wondering how they're going to pay bills this month now that their former employer, Freedom Security LP, broke its promise to pay them the wages they earned.

Terrible's celebrates four years: Terrible's celebrates four years

Boy missing after mom found dead: David Kihara; North Las Vegas police were searching for a preschooler Monday after they discovered the boy's mother dead in the family's apartment.

Panel OKs rules to help firms hurt by tax: The Nevada Tax Commission on Monday unanimously approved temporary regulations that will allow businesses drowning in state tax debt to bail out by paying cents-on-the-dollar settlements to the Nevada Department of Taxation.

Sports briefs for December 7, 2004: Former NBA all-star Calvin Murphy on Monday was cleared of sexually abusing five of his 10 daughters more than a decade ago.

Neonopolis being sold: Jennifer Shubinski; The distressed downtown Neonopolis mall has a buyer with the sale expected to close by year's end, its broker and operator said.

Nevada seeing results in China outreach: RENO -- Nevada got a 20-page spread in the Chinese version of Modern Bride magazine and a commitment to two 30-minute television specials, the first tangible rewards for the state's playing host to a delegation of Chinese journalists earlier this year.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: UNLV's coaching choice already has made one grade: Based on the wide smiles at Monday's news conference announcing Utah offensive coordinator Mike Sanford as the new UNLV football coach, it can be assumed UNLV got the man it wanted.

All Grown Up: Las Vegas' expansion charted in National Archives exhibit: Suzanne Struglinski; The photos, part of an exhibit to illustrate how the country has changed, appear in a section focusing on "The Changing Landscape."

Preps: Monday's Results: Girls' Basketball Centennial 92, Bonanza 25: CENT: Ashley Blake 24 pts, Whitley Cox 20 pts, Italee Lucas 17 pts. BNZA: Kathy Wolinsky 8 pts. Coronado 72, Shadow Ridge 62 (OT): CORO: Stephanie Delgado 26 pts. Clark 51, Vo-Tech 26 Palo Verde 62, Rancho 37

Columnist Jeff German: Threat to LV again overlooked: I thought John Kerry would win the race for president.

Openness key to helping workers combat problems, executive says: By Liz Benston; Casino companies need to do a better job making workers feel more comfortable about approaching their employers for help in conquering personal problems, including a gambling addiction, Steve Wynn's top human resources executive said at a conference Monday.

Mayor taps trainer for key post: Dan Kulin; Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman wants to hire his personal fitness trainer to run his City Hall office and replace his current chief of staff, who is engaged to one of the mayor's sons, city officials said Monday.

House GOP expects vote on intelligence bill today: Jesse J. Holland; WASHINGTON -- The Republican-controlled House agreed today to vote to overhaul the nation's intelligence agencies now that President Bush and House Armed Services chairman Duncan Hunter have endorsed a provision guaranteeing battlefield commanders access to top-secret information.

Lawmaker suggests plan to freeze tax assessments: Launce Rake and Stephen Curran; Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, said Monday that she has requested a bill that would freeze property tax assessments throughout the state at last year's level, effectively wiping out increases that in Clark County have amounted to 20 percent to 50 percent or more.

Killers draw 3 nominations: Spencer Patterson; Las Vegas rock band the Killers has been nominated for three Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy announced this morning.

Delayed flights on the rise at McCarran: Christina Littlefield; It may be good news only to the shopkeepers and vendors at McCarran International Airport.

Control Board member won't seek second term: Scherer has been mentioned as one of the possible replacements for Attorney General Brian Sandoval, who is resigning to take a federal judicial appointment.

Mikohn spinning off sign division: By Liz Benston; In its latest restructuring move, Mikohn Gaming Corp. will sell off its casino sign division to the division's employees by March and will rename the company in a move to focus on its slot machine and systems business.

Lottery operator buys interest in Atronic Gaming: Lottery operator buys interest in Atronic Gaming

Oral histories shed light on atomic era: Administrator Linda M. Smith, 64, remembers the fear of the Cold War that was the "driver behind everything" she and her co-workers did.

AGA vice president: Casino industry remains strong: RENO -- The consolidation that is occurring in the gaming industry is a sign of its maturity and success, an American Gaming Association executive said today.

Women's Top 25 Fared: AP; 2. Stanford (5-0) did not play. Next: vs. Pepperdine, Friday.

Target tries to make up for kettle ban: By Timothy Pratt; Target stores District Manager Ray Sconiers gave the charity a $2,000 check, the first of many the retail chain will be donating to the local arm of the national charity, said Charles Desiderio, spokesman for the Salvation Army of Clark County.

Lady Rebels lose: ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan's Kelly Helvey scored her only field goal of the game on a layup with seven seconds left to lift the host Wolverines to a 45-43 win against UNLV at Crisler Arena on Monday night.

Rainy day fund gets boost from economy: CARSON CITY -- A strong economy is helping to rebuild the state's rainy day fund that was drained by Gov. Kenny Guinn and the Legislature in 2003 to meet government expenses.

Panel: Yucca transportation plan flawed: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department lacks a "detailed strategic plan" for transporting nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, a congressionally appointed Yucca watchdog group said.

Ensign touts importance of becoming role models: Kirsten Searer; Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., hosted a largely faith-based summit on fatherless children Monday, diving into a topic that has drawn him criticism in the past.

Monorail officials say progress is being made toward reopening: Test runs of the trains along the four-mile route from the MGM Grand to the Sahara hotel have been stepped up, as engineers from Bombardier Inc., the Canadian firm that built and operates the trains, and Exponent, the third-party oversight firm brought in to inspect the system, review potential flaws, Todd Walker, a spokesman for the monorail, said.

Two more Catskills casinos under discussion: Joel Stashenko; ALBANY, N.Y. -- Gov. George Pataki said Monday the state is negotiating with Indian tribes to put five Native American casinos in the Catskill Mountains, two more than are now authorized.

Enclave had 1.5 million visitors in October: In the first 10 months, visitor arrivals rose 44.1 percent to 13.7 million, the statistics bureau said in a statement on its Web site. The number exceeded the 11.9 million arrivals in the whole of 2003.

Boulder City opens police training center: David Kihara; A local excavation company today will officially hand over to Boulder City Police a 650,000-square-foot training facility that the company developed, officials said, adding that the site could be used as an inter-agency police training area for the Nevada Highway Patrol and other police agencies.

Ex-Rebels QB has Gladiators' attention: Adam Candee; The sight of Jason Thomas zipping passes down the field at Sam Boyd Stadium isn't all that unusual.

Ralph Siraco's Hollywood Park selections: 1st Race -- FINANCIAL -- Draws good inner post for starter allowance route, Espinoza on Abrams trainee, good spot for action. DOWNTIME -- Draws alongside top pick at the rail for two-turn opener, Douglas atop Cerin trainee, right time for Downtime here? Value Play -- BULL MOOSE

Threat assessment called priority: Jace Radke; A statewide threat assessment remains a priority for the Nevada Homeland Security Commission as it decides how to spend $28 million in federal grant money allocated to make the state safer from terrorist attack.

Chub Drakulich put UNLV sports on map: Michael "Chub" Drakulich's organizational skills and his concern for others made him a winning coach, friends and family say.

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

Rules change could threaten smoking petitions: Kirsten Searer; Three initiatives that would amend state laws on smoking and marijuana use could be disqualified in the next few days, and backers are hinting they might take the issue to court.

Community briefs for December 7, 2004: Opportunity Village will hold its inaugural Hero Night tonight at its Magical Forest.

News briefs for December 7, 2004: A 46-year-old California man wanted in connection with the fatal stabbing of a man in Las Vegas on Nov. 24 surrendered to authorities in Los Angeles on Sunday, Metro Police said.

Editorial: Las Vegas gets stiffed: What is mysterious is that the Homeland Security Department reduced what the Las Vegas metropolitan area receives from the Urban Area Initiative program, which distributes money directly to cities and urban areas deemed by the department to be most at risk from a terrorist attack. The $8.5 million that Las Vegas will receive in the coming year is lower than what it received this year -- $10.5 million -- even though the amount available in this program has increased from $725 million in 2004 to $854 million in 2005.

Editorial: Ethics laws take a hit: Augustine's blithe remarks quite accurately reflect the state of ethics enforcement in Nevada. There is a consensus that penalties for ethical lapses are rarely imposed, and when they are they will amount to something well short of the maximum. Augustine stipulated before the Nevada Ethics Commission in September to three violations of state ethics laws. The violations, involving the use of state employees and state equipment in running her 2002 re-election campaign, resulted in her impeachment in the Assembly and trial in the Senate. She could have been removed from office.

Harassment suit against Augustine being dismissed: CARSON CITY -- A sexual harassment lawsuit filed against state Controller Kathy Augustine by her former chief deputy is being dismissed on a legal technicality, a Reno lawyer said.

Letter: Free trade area is wrong path: Secretary of State Colin Powell told business leaders in Sao Paolo, Brazil, that the U.S. was firmly committed to seeing this Pan-American free trade deal take effect early next year. But is this what Americans really want?

Personal stories bring Test Site history to life: By Christina Littlefield; As John Campbell, 61, and a car full of fellow miners came over the ridge known as Control Point Hill at the Nevada Test Site on the morning of Dec. 18, 1970, he said he could see the desert "begin to bubble."

Gas prices, smaller jackpots result in fewer lottery dollars: The state Board of Economic Advisors project the lottery will deliver about $255 million. That's $32 million less than the last fiscal year -- a banner year for the lottery when large jackpots fueled record sales and resulted in a surplus.

Sanford eager to dig in at a football 'gold mine': Steve Guiremand; NAME: Mike Sanford.

Immunization schedule for December 7, 2004: HENDERSON PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER: 129 W. Lake Mead Parkway, Building A, Suite 10, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Players get a taste of the coach's intensity: Steve Guiremand; New UNLV coach Mike Sanford laid down the law with his new team during a 40-minute meeting on Monday afternoon at the Lied Athletic Complex.

Report: Conglomerate in talks to buy heart device maker: The New York Times said in today's editions that executives close to the talks that it did not identify further said the discussions are at a delicate stage and the deal could still fall apart. But it said the executives were trying to reach a final deal within a week.

Fight fixer avoids jail time: Jace Radke; Convicted fight-fixer Richard Mittleman has been sentenced to six months of home detention and three years of probation in connection with a rigged fight at Paris Las Vegas on Aug. 12, 2000.

Former teacher gets 20 to life for sex with minors: By Matt Pordum; A former substitute teacher for Clark County elementary schools who also volunteered for the Boy Scouts was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for molesting a 12-year-old mentally handicapped relative and the boy's 8-year-old friend.

Obituaries for December 7, 2004: Ralph Vernette Bland, 76, of North Las Vegas died Nov. 29 in North Las Vegas. He was born March 17, 1928, in Salt Lake City. A resident for 11 months, he was an Army veteran.

Letter: U.S. should remove troops from Iraq now: My president attacked a country that was at peace. It made me think of Germany and Poland. This Iraq quagmire is an unnecessary and horrible mistake.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Catalogs border on the absurd: This yuletide dilemma illustrates that Americans will buy pretty much anything.

Brazilian bull rider dances away with another win: Paulo Crimber, a native Brazilian who lives in Haltom City, Texas, won his second consecutive round of bull riding Monday in front of 17,367 fans at the Thomas & Mack Center -- the highest-attended Monday in the 20 years of the event.