Print edition for February 26, 2004

Ann-Margret shows no signs of slowing down: Marvin Hamlisch, who wrote scores for such films as "The Sting" and "The Way We Were," performed at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on Sunday.

Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Amendments unworthy: Why is it that whenever people in this country don't get their way, or don't get their way easily, they start a movement to amend the Constitution of the United States? And why is it that the politicians, ever eager to jump on a popular bandwagon for some short-term political boost, are at the lead?

Execution scheduled March 5 for killer: CARSON CITY -- An execution date of March 5 has been set at the Nevada State Prison for Daryl Mack, 45, convicted of the rape-strangulation of a Reno woman in her home in October 1988.

Letter: Reilly reiterates view on collective bargaining: Your editorial characterizes top management at Clark County as wishing to withdraw collective bargaining for employees at the county. This is not my position, nor is it the county's position. I am personally in support of collective bargaining and this is made clear in your Feb. 20 article, which states, "Reilly, the county manager, said his discussing this issue of wages and benefits is not an effort to take away collective bargaining. He said that unions and management both have to come together to address the issues of wage increases that are going up faster than those for the rest ...

Obituaries for Feb. 26, 2004: Willie Helen Bell, 72, of Las Vegas died Friday in Las Vegas. A resident for 13 years, she was born April 5, 1931, in Ruston, La.

State threatens to sue Energy Department over funds: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Nevada has threatened to sue the Energy Department if it does not allocate an additional $4 million for the state's work on the Yucca Mountain project.

Editorial: Enact controls -- now: Mercury poisoning can result in memory and vision loss, poor attention spans, learning problems and physical impairment. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that one of every six American women of childbearing age have unsafe levels of mercury in their blood. The EPA also says as many as 630,000 children may be born each year with too much mercury in their blood. The Bush administration has strongly cautioned women and children against eating mercury-contaminated fish.

Community briefs for Feb. 26, 2004: The Las Vegas Field Office of the Department of Housing Community Development along with the Center for Faith-based and Community Initiatives and the Las Vegas Department of Leisure Services are conducting a two-day grant writing workshop from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 3-4.

Guinn decries loss of revenue to Internet services: Kirsten Searer; Gov. Kenny Guinn said Wednesday he plans to meet with officials from all of Nevada's cities and counties to talk about millions of dollars that could be lost as residents switch to new -- and untaxed -- technologies.

Letter: Clinton smartly avoided Iraq war: Notice that Clinton did not immediately declare a war, however. Why is that? Well, for one thing, he had nothing to prove to his daddy. He had no big oil companies that needed payback for getting him into office. He had no vice president pulling his strings.

Prone to Violins: 'Reformed child prodigy' Cerovsek performs with LV Philharmonic: Sounding refreshed and inspired, the former child prodigy who jokingly refers to himself as a "reformed child prodigy" talks openly about plans regarding his career and academic ambitions.

Firefighter takes rescue in stride: Jace Radke; Less than 30 minutes after arriving at the construction site of Wynn Las Vegas, Clark County Firefighter Vay Mickelson found himself slowly being lowered 52 stories to the ground with an injured crane operator in tow.

Editorial: Cab drivers are still in harm's way: Despite the arguments made by the cab companies and the Taxicab Authority, common sense tells us that cameras are needed. Cab drivers, just like employees of convenience stores, are very vulnerable to armed robberies. Cameras certainly will prevent some robberies, including those that end in murder. While cameras aren't a panacea -- crimes inevitably will be committed -- they still would be beneficial if a cab driver was robbed or attacked, providing the police with video to help capture an assailant. As for concerns about privacy, they're phony arguments. Security cameras are everywhere today, particularly in casinos, and that hasn't ...

Letter: Juvenile crimes are decreasing: Local officials claim that their decision "to be tough on teens who commit crimes" was spurred by a one-year increase in juvenile crime rates. It is fallacious to use any one-year spike in juvenile crime to justify punishing children in adult court. This short-term spike is possibly a statistical anomaly and should be examined in the context of nationwide declining trends in juvenile crime.

Classification request could be part of defense bill: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department's request that Congress grant it authority to classify radioactive waste as high-level or low-level material could be included in the Defense Authorization bill, set to be introduced later this year.

Ensign would support amendment banning gay marriage: Ensign cautioned that changing the Constitution should not be done lightly.

Nevadan part of counterdrug, rescue efforts: Dick Benoit; A Laughlin High School graduate and career sailor recently participated in a rescue at sea as a crew member on a Navy frigate conducting counter-drug patrols.

Letter: Draft would be more fair: President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney avoided active duty in the military, as did most of our presently elected officials on the national as well as local levels. Yet we hear them talking about the need to sacrifice the lives of our soldiers in the interest of national security and patriotism. The burden of defending this country falls almost totally on the non-privileged, minorities and the economically deprived.

Economic reports mixed: Sales fell 1.7 percent last month, the Commerce Department reported in Washington.

Deal may be announced: Sources close to the negotiations for the supermarkets and the strikers told the Los Angeles Daily News that a deal could be announced as early as today.

Court sides with Pahrump couple on mobile home issue: CARSON CITY -- The Nevada Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that there is a distinction, both in law and in popular meaning, between manufactured home and a mobile home.

Forum address future of schools: By Emily Richmond; Clark County Schools Superintendent Carlos Garcia and the district's five region superintendents had a small but intent audience Wednesday for a forum on the successes and challenges facing public schools.

Agencies getting paid for alert time: Jace Radke; The state Division of Emergency Management has approved homeland security funds for Metro Police and the Nevada Highway Patrol, completing the reimbursement of state and local agencies for additional money spent on security during the high terror alert over the winter holidays.

It's one council to another: Sito Negron; People sometimes say political meetings are boring, but Tashina Campbell's third grade class didn't think so Wednesday.

Letter: Smoking should be prohibited: We all have a right to smoke-free air. No one has any "right" to smoke and poison the air around others. Meanwhile, ambient tobacco smoke kills 65,000 innocent Americans every year. Las Vegas is a major contributor to this genocide. When I visited your city, I found it to be a veritable cesspool of tobacco smoke, from the airport to the taxis to the hotels and casinos.

Letter: Deskin's columns will be missed: I first met Ruthe when I was around 10 years old. My dear departed mother, Isabelle Mack, had just started to work as a writer for the Sun. Ruthe was then assistant to Publisher Hank Greenspun, the kindest and most humble man I have ever met.

Illinois license field narrowed to three firms: By Liz Benston; Illinois gaming regulators Wednesday selected Harrah's Entertainment Inc., Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. and Midwest Gaming and Entertainment LLC as the three final bidders for a closely-watched casino license expected to be sold at auction in a few months.

Barrick Gaming secures financing for acquisitions: Barrick Gaming Corp. announced plans in December 2002 to purchase the Gold Spike, Western Hotel, Las Vegas Club and Plaza hotel-casinos in addition to two downtown motels and various parcels of vacant and developed land downtown.

Goodman getting good feedback on the phone: Sito Negron; The calls coming in to Mayor Oscar Goodman's office after a phone campaign excoriating him for following a "gay agenda" are running about 80 percent in favor of the mayor, according to a city spokeswoman.

VegasBeat -- Timothy McDarrah: Celebs have Palms parlor under their skin: We were at the bar at N9NE (Palms) with Robin Leach and Melissa Rivers Wednesday night when Rivers took off her white, vinyl pointy-toed boot to show us a tattoo on her ankle.

Gaming briefs for Feb. 26, 2004: The bankrupt Aladdin resort on the Las Vegas Strip reported a $402,122 loss in January in a recent filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

Rebels playing Jay's way: Steve Guiremand; The fans in the Thomas & Mack Center are still chanting "Spoooooon!" when UNLV's men's basketball coach is announced before each game. But that's where the similarities between interim Rebels head coach Jay Spoonhour and the man he replaced three games ago, father Charlie Spoonhour, seem to end these days.

Work to start on launch ramp: The project is expected to take up to 120 days.

Probation given in sex assault case: Erica Johnson; The former Marine charged with slipping a woman a drug at a local nightclub and raping her was sentenced to five years' probation Wednesday.

Prominent West home builder Pardee dies at 87: Jennifer Shubinski; George M. Pardee Jr., a Las Vegas pioneer who built his family-owned business into one of the largest home construction companies in the West, died this week.

Venetian exec leaves for new venture: Venetian hotel-casino owner Sheldon Adelson's right-hand man is leaving the company to build a new gaming resort in Las Vegas.

Hughes land value trimmed: The Clark County Board of Equalization tackled some of Southern Nevada's thorniest property-tax disputes Wednesday in a daylong meeting.

More nuke waste to be shipped to Test Site: CARSON CITY -- The Energy Department intends to sharply increase its truck shipments of what it calls low-level radioactive waste to the Nevada Test Site, and state officials say there's probably nothing they can do about it.

Valley handling rains well: Police reported 15 accidents with no injuries, and four with injuries, between midnight and 8 a.m. this morning. That's a fairly normal set of numbers for an overnight Wednesday-Thursday, said Metro Sgt. Rob Lundquist.

Weather postpones search for missing plane: Volunteers from the Nevada, California and Arizona Civil Air Patrols, an auxiliary of the Air Force, have found no signs of the plane or its passengers in their search of the desert area between Las Vegas and Palm Springs, Calif.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: UNLV gets a teaspoon full of sugar: Three down, 12 to go for Jay Spoonhour.

Individuals not named in Venetian complaint: Don't look for the names of The Venetian executives responsible for rigging three February 2002 contests for high-rolling gamblers in the complaint and settlement agreement the megaresort and the Gaming Control Board agreed to Tuesday.

Citizen review board rips officer: Jen Lawson; A Metro Police detective who questioned a burglary suspect without reading her Miranda rights and searched her purse without a warrant is guilty of serious misconduct, the department's citizen review board concluded in a report released Wednesday.

Shuffle Master continues to grow: Two acquisitions by Shuffle Master Inc. -- one that closed Tuesday and another expected to be completed within three months -- will expand the Las Vegas company both geographically and in product line.

Work continues on shops in Green Valley: The shops are being developed by American Nevada Company. The Greenspun family owns American Nevada and the Las Vegas Sun. The family is also a partner in Green Valley Ranch Station Casino.

Fight schedule: At Widnes, England, (Showtime), Stephen Foster Jr., England, vs. Sean Hughes, England, 12, junior middleweights; Thomas McDonagh, England, vs. Bobby Banghar, England, 12, junior middleweights.

Culinary Union parent will merge with UNITE: The nation's leading apparel workers union and the nation's leading union for hotel and restaurant workers have voted to merge, union officials said Wednesday.

Lady Rebels need win in Lobos rematch: If it's true that you reap what you sow, then the UNLV women's basketball team is left with trying to grimly reap a high seed in the upcoming Mountain West Conference tournament.

Colleges fight to produce minority teachers: Christina Littlefield and Cy Ryan; Nevada's two universities continue to churn out new teachers at a higher rate every year, but recruiting teachers with diverse backgrounds and interests to meet the needs of the school districts they serve continues to be a challenge.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Two top fighters make big changes: Dean Juipe; As subplots go, this one is pretty interesting and extremely rare. It intertwines two championship-caliber fighters and three highly regarded trainers in a mix-and-match arrangement that takes a minute to decipher.

Centennial plan: Win title No. 3: Adam Candee; Today Lawlor Events Center, Reno Boys' semifinals

Senators chastise FERC on Enron, Nevada Power dispute: Kevin Rademacher; Nevada's U.S. senators on Wednesday criticized the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's handling of a dispute between bankrupt Enron Corp. and Nevada Power Co. and Nevada Power's Reno-based sister company.

Feds search house of Steve Wynn's brother: Jen Lawson; Las Vegas executive Kenny Wynn, the brother of casino-hotel magnate Steve Wynn, recently was served with a search warrant at his home in connection with a child pornography investigation, according to law enforcement sources.

Ad campaign stresses fun: The new advertising will focus on the 10-year-old resort's iconic shape and many of the fun activities Luxor guests can enjoy, Marz said.

Wynn says rule changes will advance Chinese casino: Recent developments make it clear that Wynn Resorts will soon begin building its Wynn Macau resort, Steve Wynn said Wednesday.

Construction supplier growing: The plant is expected to be operational by June and will increase the company's local capacity by 10 percent.

Teen testifies in murder trial: Erica D. Johnson; Sixteen-year-old Mark Ford was good at breaking into people's homes.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Last week's rain at Pomona helps some teams: The rain that blanketed Southern California last weekend and forced the postponement of the season-opening NHRA national event at Pomona Raceway was not entirely unwelcome in some quarters of the pit area.

Sports briefs for February 26, 2004: Any combination of Wranglers victories or losses by the fifth-place Bakersfield Condors will put the Wranglers in the playoffs.

There's good news for LV commuters: Dan Kulin and Heather Rawlyk; Las Vegas traffic can be slow, frustrating and a favorite complaint of area commuters, but according to a Census Bureau survey from 2000 to 2002, the average trip to work shrank slightly for residents of Las Vegas, Clark County and the state.

Slow, steady rain drenches valley: Sito Negron; Winter weather stormed through California and eased into the Las Vegas Valley overnight Wednesday, dumping snow on the Spring Mountains and leaving the valley drenched by this morning.

One weakness dogs Morales -- overconfidence: Dean Juipe; Brave and strong, Erik Morales is 10 years into a professional career that will almost certainly lead him to the Hall of Fame. A slugger with tremendous skills, he could also achieve a legendary status and come to be known as one of Mexico's all-time greatest fighters.

News briefs for Feb. 26, 2004: Two floors of a building on the south side of the Community College of Southern Nevada's West Charleston Boulevard campus were evacuated Wednesday after a small amount of ether was spilled in a lab.

Minorities have poor graduation rate in Nevada: By Emily Richmond; Nevada scored poorly in a new report of graduation rates for black and Hispanic students. The report showed a chasm between the percentage of white high schoolers who earn diplomas and their minority classmates.

Classes resume at ITT Technical Institute: INDIANAPOLIS -- Classes resumed today at 10 campuses of ITT Technical Institute in eight states where authorities a day earlier served warrants and searched records in an investigation that spooked investors in the chain of technical schools.