Print edition for December 20, 2004

The pucks strike 12:00: Nick Christensen; THE GAME: Wranglers (11-10-3, sixth in ECHL West) vs. Fresno Falcons (10-11-2, seventh in West).

Schools, gambling opponents worry as poker's popularity with teens increases: Martha Irvine; CHICAGO -- Now that his high school football season is over, Zak Coppinger has been playing poker every chance he can get.

Man pleads guilty to money laundering: Paul Ransom entered his plea before U.S. District Court Judge Kent Dawson, and is facing up to 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

July 1 rollout targeted for video slot games: "We aren't just going to flip a switch. We are going to plan it and make it successful," Lottery Director Dale Penn said during a meeting of the state Lottery Commission.

China's Hu praises Macau's progress: Jasmine Yap and Joshua Fellman; Chinese President Hu Jintao praised Macau's economic success, attributing it to a political system devised by China, after arriving to mark the fifth anniversary of the former Portuguese colony's return to China.

Woman who allegedly fled after hitting cop with car arrested in L.A.: Natashia Jackson was arrested in Hawthorne, Calif., and booked on a warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, Metro Lt. Ted Snodgrass said.

Letter: Bush's retirement plan carries risks: At age 55 I was able to retire. With my modest retirement, my small investment in Thrift Savings, and a part-time job, my wife and I are able to live in Las Vegas.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Rebels were roped calves vs. Cowboys, but they should make hay in MWC: If this Las Vegas Showdown game against No. 4 Oklahoma State was supposed to be a measuring stick for UNLV, then the Cowboys rapped the Rebels over the knuckles with it.

Letter: Being critical is a cherished right: Ms. Waite's suggestion is made in her defense of Bush's foreign policy of ridding the world of the bad guys such as Saddam Hussein. She states that once the bad guys are gone then and only then can the citizens vote and pursue happiness.

Letter: Casinos should have areas for nonsmokers: There ought to be a law that when a new casino is being built, and there's just rubble on the ground, it should be mandatory to provide a 1) ground floor for nonsmokers and 2) a second floor for smokers, each of which having an equal number of slots and tables. That way everyone is accommodated.

Former state player of year re-enrolls at Palo Verde: Nick Christensen; Nate Schulte is officially back.

Area's homeless to be counted again: By Timothy Pratt; After not having any hard numbers on the Las Vegas Valley's homeless since 1999, local private and public agencies and the federal government will soon be able to quote from two censuses of the less fortunate among us conducted within a nine-month period, according to a county official.

Death data offer rare look into plight of the destitute: By Timothy Pratt; At Friday's memorial service for 41 homeless men and women who died in the Las Vegas Valley this year, it seemed to some that the homeless are better understood and better treated when they're no longer around.

High court upholds malpractice judgment against LV hospital: CARSON CITY -- In a 5-2 decision, the Nevada Supreme Court has upheld a $4.8 million medical malpractice judgment against Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas in the case of a man who was left in a vegetative state after surgery for a rotator cuff injury.

Competency hearing set for former football player: By Matt Pordum; A hearing to determine whether the former NFL player accused of shooting at the home of entertainers Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn is competent to stand trial is expected to be conducted after an arraignment Dec. 28.

Man killed after lunging at police with sword: A 48-year-old man was shot and killed by Metro Police Friday night after the man lunged with a sword at an officer, police said.

Second state board suspends license of Las Vegas homeopath: CARSON CITY -- A second state regulatory board has suspended the license of Dr. Edward Hoffman, a Las Vegas osteopath, saying he poses "an imminent threat to the public health and safety."

Las Vegas company signs 20 casino deals: Global Cash Access, which has about 960 agreements worldwide, announced that two of the 20 new deals are with Southern Nevada casino properties -- the Jerry's Nugget and Westward Ho casinos.

Women's Top 25 Fared: AP; 2. Stanford (8-0) beat Missouri 71-55.

Unemployment rate up from record low: CARSON CITY -- Nevada's unemployment rate in November inched up to 3.7 percent with an estimated 42,000 people out of work, but it is only one-tenths of a percent higher than the record low of 3.6 percent in October.

Little known about Russian group that bought Yukos unit: Alex Nicholson; MOSCOW -- Little is known about the group that made the only bid for the main production unit of Russia's largest oil producer -- Yukos -- and speculation mounted it was bought by a front for Gazprom, the Russian state natural gas conglomerate.

Company to offer music service on cell phones: Sprint will offer a new reason, besides placing calls, for people to use their mobile phones. It will introduce a radio service that allows people to listen to music over their phones, whether through an earpiece or the phone itself.

LV lawyer, wife pledge $1 million to state college: David Kihara; A Las Vegas lawyer and his wife are pledging to provide $1 million to Nevada State College so long as the Nevada Legislature ponies up the remaining $9 million needed for a new liberal arts building on the campus.

Lawmaker wants to push back high school start time: By Emily Richmond; Like many parents, Assemblyman Bob Beers, R-Las Vegas, wants to hear less moaning and groaning by Clark County teens when they are pried out of bed on school days -- and he thinks it should also lead to better test scores.

Ensign: Bush's Nevada win holds him to Yucca rulings: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said President Bush's victory in Nevada empowers the state to hold Bush to his promise that he will respect the rulings of the courts on Yucca Mountain.

Union, Mandalay meeting with federal mediator: Alana Roberts; Whether or not 320 maintenance workers at three Mandalay Resort Group properties will strike or not could be decided in a meeting set for Thursday between leaders of the company, the union and a federal mediator.

Experts: Nevada behind in problem gambling treatment: By Liz Benston; The Problem Gambling Center, located in a warren of office complexes on the north side of Sahara Avenue and across from the Palace Station casino, isn't easy to find. But if more people knew about it, they might very well be put on a waiting list.

Obituaries for Dec. 20, 2004: Mildred A. Allen, 73, of Henderson died Friday in a local hospital. She was born March 27, 1931, in England, Ark. A resident for five years, she was a retired electronics assembler.

Consumers speak out on utilities: Kevin Rademacher; Only 10 ratepayers turned out at a consumer session on Friday to sound off on the state of Southern Nevada's regulated utilities.

Married 'Havana' performers reunited: Noybel Gorgoy and her husband, Jose David Alvarez Del Valle, had been apart for almost half of their yearlong marriage.

Spectra fares poorly in test: Adrian Lund, the chief operating officer of the institute, which is financed by car insurers, called the performance "a surprise."

Substance turns out to be denture powder: Suspicious white particles discovered on a CAT bus at 4:45 p.m. Sunday turned forced some patrons of a neighborhood bar to wait for three and a half hours while police officers and a Haz-Mat crew investigated.

States dive into talks over Colorado River cutbacks: Representatives from seven Colorado River basin states met Friday to discuss ways to cut use of water from the river, which is used by more than 25 million people and on 3.5 million acres of crops throughout the West.

Doctor faces charge of sex assault: Jen Lawson; Child molestation has been added to the list of charges filed against a Las Vegas pediatrician who allegedly had sexually explicit photographs of an adolescent boy on his home computer.

News briefs for December 20, 2004: Metro Police responded to a small private plane that crash-landed in a remote desert area four miles south of Jean on Saturday after it ran out of gas.

Report: Wages don't keep up with U.S. rental costs: WASHINGTON -- Nevadans who rely on just a full-time job earning the federal minimum wage cannot afford the rent and utilities on a one- or two-bedroom apartment, an advocacy group on low-income housing reported this morning.

New Predator training chief Breeden praised by AF Reserve commander: Jace Radke; The new commander of Nellis Air Force Base's Predator training squadron is the first of many long-term investments that are now paying off, said Lt. Gen. John Bradley, commander of the nation's Air Force Reserve soldiers.

Student in dress code spat moves: By Emily Richmond; A Liberty High School student whose refusal to follow the campus dress code led to a federal lawsuit has left Clark County for Winnemucca, and her father is citing the harassment and scrutiny that followed the controversy as reasons for her move.

Slow weekend sales leave retailers nervous: Anne D'Innocenzio; NEW YORK -- A much-hoped for sales bonanza for the nation's retailers appeared not to materialize on the last weekend before Christmas, despite an abundance of deals on toys and apparel.

Reggie Jackson: LV ready for MLB team: Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson, who has put together an ownership group to bid for a Major League Baseball team, said he thinks Las Vegas is ready to become a big-league city.

Editorial: No need to rush sale of city-owned land: The city, since 1999, has spent about $7 million buying and accumulating parcels that now comprise the 18 acres that McDonald wants. The reason the city purchased the parcels of land, according to Deputy City Manager Steve Houchens, was to help clean up the blighted area. Several years ago the city did make a formal request for offers to buy the land, Houchens said, but no acceptable responses were made. The city doesn't have a plan to develop the land, but Councilman Gary Reese said at one time the city hoped to build senior housing there.

Columnist Susan Snyder: We need to clear the air of cell phones: Federal officials now are considering whether people should be allowed to talk on their cell phones while in flight on commercial airlines.

Orchestra's show appeals to ears, not heart: Spencer Patterson; It's safe to say Nat King Cole and Bing Crosby never imagined lasers and electric guitars when they recorded their Christmas classics during the 1940s.

Preps: Schedule: Boys' Basketball

Las Vegas Valley expected to have one of hottest years: Preliminary information indicates that 2004 may be the fourth-hottest year on record in the Las Vegas Valley, National Weather Service forecasters said.

Sports briefs for December 20, 2004: The Boston Red Sox's window for signing free agent catcher Jason Varitek grew smaller Sunday night when Varitek declined the team's offer of salary arbitration. Midnight Sunday was the deadline for free agents to accept or decline arbitration.

Editorial: Challenge to ethics law tossed aside: The case arose in 2002 after the Ethics Commission tried to force Independent American Party candidates running for elective office to fill out forms listing their income sources, real estate holdings, creditors' names, gift information, business holdings and titles of any public offices they were holding at the time. Despite the reasonableness of the requirement, the Independent American Party filed a lawsuit against the commission. Independent American Party officials contended that the disclosure statements were an unconstitutional invasion of their privacy and discouraged potential contributors from donating to third parties such as theirs.

EPA says county OK on one type of dust: Stephen Curran; The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday said Clark County has stayed below the allowable level of one type of harmful dust in its air.

Progress comes in painful steps: Steve Guiremand; If Saturday night's 79-67 loss to fourth-ranked Oklahoma State proved anything to the UNLV Rebels, it's that the road back to college basketball's elite is going to be more of a marathon than a sprint.

Evans quits top job with Desert Pines: Nick Christensen; Desert Pines football coach Leon Evans resigned last week. Evans said he is trying to pursue a career coaching college football.

Goodman meets with private group: Dan Kulin; Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman expects to meet today with a private group interested in helping Las Vegas lure a Major League Baseball team.

Mount Charleston visitors to be asked for impressions: Interviewers will ask visitors to Mount Charleston the following questions on a volunteer basis starting Jan. 1:

Firm wants to restart racing: The offer by Casinopartners Management Inc., which operates casinos in several countries, is now before a judge handling the racetrack's bankruptcy.

Case of the Spins: CD fans dizzy with holiday gift options: Spencer Patterson; For such CD enthusiasts, there's often no better holiday gift than a boxed set, maybe a multiple-disc collection they've been eyeing in record stores for months. This year's boxed set options include something for virtually every taste in music, from multi-artist compilations focusing on college rock, hip-hop or bluegrass to releases centered on a single artist, be it Miles Davis, Michael Jackson or Nirvana.

Bond with Sanford lands JC All-American corner: Steve Guiremand; UNLV picked up three more recruiting commitments over the weekend including a key one from JC All-American cornerback John Guice of Grossmont College in El Cajon, Calif.

Inconsistent Lady Rebels watch a big one slip away: Adam Candee; In December, these losses can be called building blocks. In a couple of months, they'll come with coupons for free therapy.

Columnist Ralph Siraco: Declan's Moon eclipses the field in Hollywood Futurity: Ralph Siraco; It has been many years since an Eclipse Award stood in the balance as late as Dec. 18. The deadline for casting ballots on horse racing's Oscars is Dec. 27, and all but one voting category had already been decided through Saturday. Now all of Santa's Eclipse list is complete.

Birth announcements for Dec. 20, 2004: Dec. 8:

Shark dies at Mandalay Bay: David Kihara; The 7 1/2 foot Great Hammerhead shark at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino's Shark Reef exhibit died Thursday night because of an infection, officials said.