Print edition for March 25, 2004

Eagle Scout honors awarded: Nicholas Fairbanks Adams, 13; William Eugene Darling III, 15; Blaine J. Davis, 16; Cecil Eric Estein Jr., 15; Clay Keith Leinbach, 17; Christopher Charles McCloskey, 15; Brandon Johnson Mackey, 17; Benjamin Christopher Mills, 18; Matthew Wayne O'Barr, 18; Sean Daniel Williams, 17; and Devin Gene Paul, 16, all of Las Vegas.

Community briefs for March 25, 2004: Cantor Daniel Friedman of Temple Beth Sholom, who had a successful career as an actor and singer on Broadway and around the world, will join tenor Alberto Mizrahi in a performance at 3 p.m. Sunday at The Orleans.

Five Nevadans in finals of travel challenge: They will match travel knowledge and geography wits, with the top scorer winning a $1,000 scholarship and a trip to Orlando, Fla., to compete for more than $100,000 in scholarships in the national finals.

Sailors taking part in Iraqi Freedom: Dick Benoit; Navy officials report at least two Nevada reservists, the son of a Pahrump couple and daughter-in-law of a Las Vegas woman, are taking part in what will be the largest rotation of troops since World War II.

Featured presentation: ShoWest shows off the latest in theater enhancements: Kirk Baird; American movie companies, and now around the world, are building movie theaters with stadium seating and digital sound systems. The experience of going to the movies is the best it's ever been.

Anti-tax advocate Schiff indicted on tax-evasion charge: Jace Radke; The self-proclaimed leading authority on income taxes in the nation was named in a 33-count federal indictment released Wednesday charging conspiracy, tax evasion and aiding and abetting in the filing of false income tax returns.

Nevada State College enjoys the feminine touch: It's a woman's world at Nevada State College in Henderson.

Company posts a loss: Interstate Bakeries had been expected to have profit of 13 cents a share, according to the average estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. Sales in the quarter ended March 6 declined about 2.5 percent from a year earlier, the Kansas City-based company said.

An Oscar-winning role: Dean Juipe; As well as Robert Allen feels he knows Bernard Hopkins, Hopkins remains certain that he has the upper hand.

Editorial: Trains and terrorists: At a Senate Commerce Committee hearing this week, Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., said, "In a lot of ways, our nation's rail infrastructure is probably as vulnerable today as it was prior to Sept. 11." The potential for terrorist attacks on waste shipments to Yucca, however, has not yet dawned on key officials within the federal bureaucracy.

Friday's horse racing entries: Post Time 1 p.m.

Planner's project opposed: Dan Kulin; The North Las Vegas Planning Commission on Wednesday postponed making a recommendation on a controversial request to change the zoning in a rural preservation area to clear the way for more homes.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: St. Joseph's shows anything is possible: In that it has been 13 years since his new team last won an NCAA tournament game and that it is aligned with a conference that gets about as much respect as a substitute teacher a day after final exams, count me among those who believe it won't be easy for Lon Kruger to return the Rebels to the glory of Tarkanian Past.

Letter: No excuses for unsafe driving: However, as usual, she probably will not be held accountable. Are we ever going to hold anyone accountable for their driving habits such as running lights, speeding, talking on the phone, etc.?

Editorial: Replace James with a moderate: Under state law, the governor fills vacancies on county commissions, with the proviso that the replacement has to have the same party affiliation as the person resigning. That means Gov. Kenny Guinn will have to appoint a Republican to replace James -- and Guinn can expect that quite a few people will seek the job. County Commission Chairman Chip Maxfield, a Republican, already is throwing his support to Tim Cory, who lost to James in the 2002 Republican primary by just 2 percent. But the Cory train shouldn't be leaving the station just yet, for a variety of reasons:

State to spend $50 million more for river bridge: CARSON CITY -- The state Board of Transportation Friday is expected to approve committing $50 million in previously approved bond money to the construction of the new bridge over the Colorado River.

Preps schedule: Baseball

Letter: Las Vegas zoo is absurd idea: Let's instead have a lovely hotel-like setting, with viewing rooms that have huge screens showing video images of all the magnificent animals of the world -- in the their homelands, in their habitats, where they live naturally.

UNLV stands tall after a slugfest: If NASCAR ever decided to hold a race indoors, it probably would look a lot like Wednesday night's UNLV-Western Kentucky Women's National Invitation Tournament quarterfinal game at Cox Pavilion.

Letter: Creativity stifled in CCSD's vapid assembly line: What has happened in the most recent years has the makings of a disaster for education in our district. Leadership at the education center on Flamingo Road has developed a philosophy of negativism toward the individual teacher. The micromanagement philosophy has become so ingrained in the district that teachers are no longer expected to be creative, but rather to be fully compliant in following a by-the-book policy of teaching a very rigid, lockstep K-12 curriculum.

House panel chief blasts Nevada over Yucca battle: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Nevada needs to stop complaining about Yucca Mountain and accept that the Energy Department's plan to move nuclear waste there is required by law, the head of the House panel that funds the project said Wednesday.

State complaints dropped: The complaints dropped Tuesday were for shoddy workmanship and for failure to comply with a notice to correct.

NLV Police seek suspect in slaying: Police said they were called to a complex at 3301 Civic Center Blvd., just north of Cheyenne Avenue, by residents who had heard a gunshot. Officers found a dead man in one of the apartments about 10:20 p.m.

Nevadans cite potential Yucca budget problems: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Nevada's members of the House of Representatives this morning argued that a proposal to fund the Yucca Mountain project directly from money set aside for nuclear waste disposal would require Congress to give up its oversight.

Venetian owner in U.K. casino deals: The company that built The Venetian in Las Vegas and is building a hotel-casino in Macau is now participating in two hotel-casino projects in deals with two soccer clubs in the United Kingdom.

Nevada Power news bad for everyone: Kevin Rademacher; After weeks of hearings earlier this year and more than four hours of deliberations on Wednesday, both customers and utility executives got bad news as final orders were issued on two Nevada Power Co. rate cases.

Driver who hit boy on bike not charged: Jen Lawson; The driver who hit and critically injured a 13-year-old boy riding his bike in a crosswalk Monday is not likely to be charged because the boy is partially to blame for the wreck, Metro Police said.

Business fliers critical of plan to switch to Ted flights for Vegas: United Airlines' strategy to bulk up on the leisure market in Las Vegas will leave its most loyal business customers no options for first-class service, critics of the plan say.

WTO 'net gambling details remain secret: By Liz Benston; Government officials have declined to release details of a landmark ruling on Internet gambling by the World Trade Organization Wednesday, making it difficult for observers to gauge whether it will end up opening U.S. borders to Internet gambling.

Business briefs for March 25, 2004: WASHINGTON -- America's economic recovery ended 2003 on a good note, growing at a solid 4.1 percent annual rate, and is expected to do even better in the year's opening quarter.

Company announces plans for largest mall in Las Vegas: Jennifer Shubinski; Triple Five Nevada Development Corp., developer of some of the world's largest retail properties, said today that it plans to build the largest mall in Las Vegas.

Barrick takes over downtown casinos: Barrick Gaming Corp. executives took control of the Plaza, Las Vegas Club, Western and Gold Spike hotel-casinos shortly after midnight this morning.

Death penalty foes speak out in Las Vegas: Ed Koch and Mary Manning; Three leading proponents of abolishing the death penalty told Las Vegans on Wednesday that they believe killers should be punished -- but not with more killing.

Gaming briefs for March 25, 2004: Southwest Airlines, the busiest commercial passenger carrier at McCarran International Airport, will add five new daily round-trip flights to Las Vegas beginning in June.

Gaughan changeover leaves workers a little melancholy: For the hundreds of folks staffing the Plaza, Las Vegas Club, Gold Spike and Western casinos this morning, the sentiment about their hotels' former owner was clear.

Vegas firm posts quarterly loss: Mikohn Gaming Corp., Las Vegas, reported a loss of $22.5 million, $1.14 a share, on revenue of $19.9 million, compared with earnings of $79,000, 1 cent a share, on revenue of $28.7 million for the same period a year earlier.

Assurance offered on water tap: CARSON CITY -- The Southern Nevada Water Authority says it can quickly remedy any problems that might crop up in the pumping of water from rural basins to serve the increasing population of Las Vegas.

UNLV student cleared in obstruction claim: A UNLV student accused of obstructing justice and being a party to the possession of a controlled substance has been cleared of charges in the Feb. 3 incident.

Flap grows over winged critters: Heather Rawlyk; The Desert Shores homeowners association board told a standing-room only audience Wednesday night that the waterfowl in their neighborhood's lakes will not be harmed.

Sports briefs for March 25, 2004: "All our experts are saying now there is still enough time to finish everything for the opening ceremony," Rogge said after attending the Olympic flame-lighting in Athens.

Slaying suspect describes 'mafia-type' gang: Erica D. Johnson; A sixth suspect charged in the death of a Silverado High School student claims the teen's killers were members of a "mafia-type" gang that centered on drug sales, according to a report compiled by Boulder City Police.

Killer makes his final preparations: CARSON CITY -- Lawrence Colwell Jr. has had a number of visitors and is making telephone calls during his final days before his scheduled execution Friday night for the murder of a Las Vegas tourist.

Fight schedule: At Los Angeles, (HBO), Jose Luis Valbuena, Venezuela, vs. Israel Vasquez, Mexico, 12, for vacant IBF super bantamweight title.

News briefs for March 25, 2004: The state Division of Aging is cautioning senior citizens not to be taken in by bogus telephone salesmen who are offering Medicare drug discount cards.

Obituaries for March 25, 2004: Joseph F. Aliseo, 84, of Henderson died Sunday in Henderson. Born March 20, 1920, in Palermo, Italy, he was a retired tool and die maker, World War II Army veteran, and a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion Post 1323 and the FAM 854.

VegasBeat -- Timothy McDarrah: Dion trumpets new year for 'A New Day ...': In an exclusive interview with VegasBeat to mark the one-year anniversary of "A New Day... " at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Diva Las Vegas consistently deflected attention -- and took little credit -- for her 200 sold-out shows over the past 12 months.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Anderson makes it 2-of-3 in Pro Stock series: Just when the rest of the NHRA Pro Stock field may have started thinking Greg Anderson actually was beatable, the reigning champion went out and won last weekend's Mac Tools Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.

Indian gambling official urges cap on tribal payments to states: Erica Werner; WASHINGTON -- Congress should cap the amount of casino revenue tribes can give to states because large payments can constitute an illegal tax, the head of the Interior Department's Indian gambling office said Wednesday.

James' job available in November: Cy Ryan and Kirsten Searer; The resignation of Clark County Commissioner Mark James leaves that seat open for election this November, the secretary of state's office said Wednesday.

Federal judge blocks BLM land sale in Lincoln County: A trio of environmental organizations has blocked a planned land sale of more than 6,000 acres in southern Lincoln County.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Steele opens 'big' club in old lumber store: Dean Juipe; Just off Washington Street on Avenue A in North Las Vegas, the new Richard Steele Boxing Club is open for business in a renovated warehouse that was once an 84 Lumber outlet.

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