Print edition for December 16, 2004

Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts files plan to exit bankruptcy: Tom Becker; Donald Trump's hotel and casino business filed a plan to exit bankruptcy that leaves him as chairman, while giving bondholders a controlling equity stake in the company and new notes in exchange for their debt.

Casino fined for inappropriate footage taped by hidden cameras: John Curran; ATLANTIC CITY -- Ladies, beware: Those "eye in the sky" surveillance cameras used by casinos don't just look for card cheats and crooked dealers.

Housing starts fall: Housing starts plunged 13.1 percent to 1.771 million residential units at an annual rate last month, from a high this year of 2.039 million in October, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. The level of building permits, a sign of future activity, declined 1.5 percent to 1.988 million.

LV City Council rejection stuns high-rise developer: Dan Kulin; A controversial plan for three high rises near downtown Las Vegas was rejected by the City Council on Wednesday, but not until after Councilman Lawrence Weekly blasted city staff for allegedly leading the developers to believe their project would be approved.

Letter: Rainy day fund must be built up: A $500 million cushion would be more like it. Remember the effect of 9/11, the attack that occurred more than 2,000 miles away? We would need several years to fully recover from any new terrorist attack here or elsewhere in America.

Monorail board OKs budget as system nears restart: Stephen Curran; Executives of the Las Vegas Monorail told the company's board of directors Wednesday morning they had no illusions for what the $650 million system will face when it re-opens.

Weekend Time Schedule: AP; Washington at San Francisco, 5 p.m.

Water Authority to consider renting building downtown: The Las Vegas city council this morning approved and the Southern Nevada Water Authority on Thursday will consider a deal that would put a new 14-story building and more than 300 water agency workers on what is now city-owned land downtown.

Security weighed by Pa. gambling panel: Mark Scolforo; HARRISBURG, Pa. -- From cheating gamblers to dishonest casino employees, many people will be looking for ways to profit illegally when the state's new slot-machine casinos go online, consultants and police warned the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board on Wednesday.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Party on ice is a true fiesta: Central Indiana is not known for its Currier & Ives snowfall. I remember it as mostly gray and very cold. What it lacked in snow, it made up for in ice.

Sexual harassment policy updated for legislative staff: CARSON CITY -- The Legislative Commission took several actions Wednesday including updating a policy regarding sexual harassment, accepted a report on clarification of the open meeting law and approved a regulation designed to prevent double taxation.

Women's Top 25 Fared: AP; 2. Stanford (7-0) did not play. Next: at Missouri, Saturday.

Supreme Court rejects appeal in former candidate's suit: CARSON CITY -- The Nevada Supreme Court Wednesday rejected the request of Steve L. Bergstrom, an unsuccessful candidate for North Las Vegas constable in 1998, who filed a defamation suit against his opponent and two others.

Letter: Las Vegas has too many obstacles for baseball team: We have heard the mayor's same discourse for years now and yet this town continues to prove that it will not support even high-quality Triple-A baseball. Major sports that have attempted permanent residence in Vegas have fallen by the wayside. Even UNLV has difficulty finding adequate support for college football and basketball, despite games with national opponents. The few college bowl games played in Vegas have proven to be less than financial successes and rated poorly in the ability to sustain large local fan interest.

Hot Off the Shelf: Holiday cookbooks offer maps to delicious journeys: In spite of the glut, there is not much that is new. I've noticed that there are fewer photographs. The new Gourmet magazine cookbook has more than 1,000 recipes, but (unlike the Gourmet cookbooks of the past) nary a full-color plate.

Police union squares off against review board in officer's case: Jen Lawson; A judge is expected to decide next month whether or not a police oversight board should be permitted to subpoena Metro Police officers accused by citizens of wrongdoing.

North Las Vegas Council briefs: The North Las Vegas City Council authorized merging the city's detention department with the North Las Vegas Police Department Wednesday.

Policy change to help more wounded stay in military: Dick Benoit; Some fundamental changes have taken place in the Defense Department's disability policy, according to Rudi Williams in an American Forces Press Service release.

Quotes from new USC basketball coach Rick Majerus: AP; ---

Editorial: Cautious optimism: Abbas, who is seeking to win next month's Palestinian presidential vote, says his comments against the uprising are intended to encourage peace talks with Israel. It does appear that more and more Palestinians have grown weary of the conflict and want peace. It also is important that Abbas has acknowledged that there needs to be an overhaul of the Palestinian security forces, a guarantee sought by Israel. "There is security chaos," Abbas admitted. "That's why we're demanding and are seeking to unify the security apparatus."

Man arrested for allegedly stealing pull-tab tickets: Adam Kresser, 23, of Independence, was arrested Tuesday and charged with first-degree theft.

Editorial: Standing up to the boss: Bodman does have impressive credentials. He was a professor of chemical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before leaving there in 1970 to work for a venture capital firm. He later joined Fidelity Investments, ultimately becoming its president. Bush said Bodman is "a problem solver who knows how to set goals and he knows how to reach them." One of the biggest issues facing Bodman is the Yucca Mountain project, which recently was dealt a setback when a federal appeals court ruled that the dump's design would contain radiation for just 10,000 years, even though a much longer period ...

PurchasePro stakeholders keep eyes on Time Warner settlement: Kevin Rademacher; Shareholders and creditors of the defunct Las Vegas technology company PurchasePro.com Inc. could benefit from a flurry of legal activity on Wednesday that included guilty pleas from four former executives of the local company and the announcement of a $510 million in settlements with media giant Time Warner Inc.

Ensign to propose rebates for turf removal: Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., today announced a $200 million rebate program to help public agencies remove turf and save water.

London Clubs 'disappointed' in gambling bill: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport limited the number of small and large casinos to eight each, after last month saying it would only allow eight so-called super casinos, amid concern further relaxation of the country's 36-year-old laws on gaming would lead to an increase in problem gambling.

World Market Center already attracting furniture companies: Kevin Rademacher; The World Market Center is being credited with luring another business to the Las Vegas Valley.

Ralph Siraco's Hollywood Park selections: 1st Race -- BLESS HER HEART -- Training at Santa Anita, draws good post in small five-filly route opener, hustling Pedroza on Cerin trainee. OUTTA THE HOUSE -- Valdivia atop Knapp trainee, draws rail box for two-turn starter allowance outing, Otta The House and into the winners circle? Value Play -- DOUBLE DANCE

Fight schedule: At Seminole Hard Rock Hotel, Hollywood, Fla., Irene Pacheco, Colombia, vs. Vic Darchinyan, Australia, 12, for Pacheco's IBF flyweight title.

Judge tosses out gambler's suit against casino company: By Liz Benston; A federal judge in Las Vegas Wednesday has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a high roller who claimed that casino giant Park Place Entertainment Corp. cheated him out of millions of dollars that he had actually won.

Yucca security clearances being expanded: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Wednesday announced that it would accept applications for security clearances to classified Yucca Mountain documents.

Input sought by SBA on size standards for small businesses: Specifically, the SBA wants comments on how to simplify the size standards, calculate employment size and designate size standards for federal procurements.

Rebels' shooting eye has been a black eye so far: Steve Guiremand; UNLV players have been busy taking their final exams this week.

Condors claim their cause is winning, not revenge: Nick Christensen; THE GAME: Wranglers (10-9-3, sixth in ECHL West) vs. Bakersfield (13-4-3, first in West).

Cameras yield surprise benefit for cab firms: Las Vegas taxi company owners have discovered a hidden bonus to placing cameras in their vehicles that could help pay for the systems they're installing.

Nevada State College post down to one man: David Kihara; The search for a new president for Nevada State College moved one step closer to completion on Wednesday after a search committee unanimously recommended Fred Maryanski for the position.

... Meanwhile on the farm: Nick Christensen; By the way, Las Vegas still has a minor league baseball team. And as of Wednesday, the Las Vegas 51s figure to have a major league manager in 2005.

Consumer session planned: In addition to members of the PUC, representatives from the utilities will be available to respond to concerns. The session will be Friday at 10:30 a.m. at the Las Vegas Senior Center, 451 E. Bonanza Road.

Census prison count boosts political clout of rural areas: Kirsten Searer; The U.S. Census shifts political power from Nevada's urban counties to its rural counties because of the way it counts the state's prison population, according to a new study.

Teacher fighting health group over medical bill: By Emily Richmond; When Spring Valley High School teacher Travis Underwood needed heart surgery this fall his health care plan, the Teachers Health Trust, gave him a list of 10 approved local providers it said could perform the mitral valve replacement he required.

$330 million water deal with Arizona approved: The boards of the Southern Nevada Water Authority and Nevada's Colorado River Commission today approved a deal to buy 1.25 million acre-feet of water from Arizona over the coming decades.

Back in the game: The point man of a private group's attempt to bring the Montreal Expos to Las Vegas said Las Vegas Sports and Entertainment (LVSE) LLC did not dissolve when Major League Baseball put that franchise in Washington, D.C., in September.

Three defending state champions are poised to declare Cimarron-Memorial the next ...: Mike Sims; Cimarron-Memorial is building a Nevada wrestling dynasty.

Millions of bees lost in accident: Eric Leake; As the sun set Wednesday, an estimated 9.6 million honeybees lay scattered, and clinging to one another for warmth beneath the Spaghetti Bowl.

Regulator: Rejection of mortgage broker rule will cause unfavorable effect in Nevada: CARSON CITY -- A state regulator warned the Legislative Commission Wednesday that its failure to adopt a mortgage broker regulation will open the door to out-of-state operators to come to Nevada and begin "predatory practices."

Group says state's highway safety laws need strengthening: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Nevada needs tougher seat belt use laws and better rules for teenagers learning to drive, safety advocates said at a press conference this morning.

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

Pennington's passing arm still hurting: Some throws fell woefully short, skittering across the turf and rolling to the feet of receivers. Others sailed over the heads of the intended targets, fluttering to a leathery thud as they tumbled incomplete. The three worst passes by Chad Pennington in Sunday's 17-6 loss to Pittsburgh ended up in the hands of Steelers defenders.

ESPN wants coaches' ballots in open: ESPN, one of the sponsors of college football's controversial coaches poll, plans to ask the American Football Coaches Association to make currently anonymous ballots public in future seasons.

Cain, longtime manager of Nevada Dance Theatre, dies: When it came to taking care of the needs of Nevada Dance Theatre and its ballet performers, no task was too small or lacking in importance for longtime company manager Norman Cain.

City worker arrested in probe of illegal use of jail inmates: Jen Lawson; Two North Las Vegas city employees were arrested Tuesday night for having detention center inmates clean buildings for a friend's janitorial business, police said.

Firefighter is convicted in crash that paralyzed captain: Molly Ball; A Las Vegas firefighter was driving too fast when his fire truck rolled over on the Rainbow Boulevard off-ramp of U.S. 95 last year, paralyzing a fire captain, a judge ruled on Wednesday.

Preps: Wednesday's results: Bishop Gorman 73, Western 63: BG: Marcus Lawrence 20 pts, C.J. Portz 17 pts 20 reb (4A record. 8 offensive -- 4A record).

Obituaries for December 16, 2004: Marlin W. Cornelius, 52, of Henderson died Wednesday in a local care center. He was born Sept. 21, 1952, in Cedar City, Utah. A resident for 15 years, he was a funeral director and a Boy Scout leader.

Sports briefs for December 16, 2004: Some sports writers are considering resigning as voters for the Doak Walker Award, given annually to the nation's top running back, because of credibility issues surrounding the 2004 election.

Wildcats can't help but score: Nick Christensen; There have been a fair amount of lopsided soccer games this year, mostly by Bonanza's boys' team in autumn, but this week's Canyon Springs girls' game at Las Vegas High was a record breaker.

Corrections: * Because of an error by USA Today, a story in Wednesday's business section misstated when the euro went into general circulation. It was Jan. 1, 2002. The dollar has declined 48.5 percent against the euro since then. The Sun regrets the error.

Goodman tabs trainer chief of staff: Dan Kulin; Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman's personal trainer was formally hired to run Goodman's City Hall office on Wednesday.

Average gasoline price dips below $2 in LV: Motorists should be able to save a few bucks this month as gasoline prices are down just in time for Christmas shopping and holiday travel.

Utah won't let Sanford coach in bowl: Steve Guiremand; New UNLV head football coach Mike Sanford will not be allowed to return to his old job of offensive coordinator at Utah for the Utes' historic Fiesta Bowl game against Pitt on Jan. 1. in Tempe, Ariz.

School-slaying suspect had threatened his sister: Emily Richmond and Stephen Curran; The man arrested Wednesday in connection with the shooting death of his sister at a Green Valley private school had been taken out of his father's will and had previously threatened his sister, the will's executor, according to police and court records.

Man arrested in fatal shooting: The dead man, whose name was not released this morning, had been shot in the head.

News briefs for December 16, 2004: Two North Las Vegas city employees were arrested Tuesday night for having inmates clean buildings for a friend's janitorial business, police said.