Print edition for October 27, 2004

Trial opens in Angelil extortion case: Molly Ball; Banned from the courtroom as his wife went on trial for extortion for allegedly threatening the husband of Celine Dion, Ae Ho Kwon, wearing a clerical collar and a dour expression, eyed the jury as they marched in and out.

Coast Casinos acquisition boosts Boyd's earnings: By Liz Benston; Third-quarter profit surged at Boyd Gaming Corp., driven largely by the July 1 acquisition of Coast Casinos Inc. as well as increased earnings at Borgata, the Atlantic City megaresort Boyd owns with MGM Mirage.

News briefs for October 27, 2004: A 53-year-old North Las Vegas man was killed about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday while walking in one of the travel lanes on Las Vegas Boulevard near Lamont Avenue, Metro Police said.

Conference attendance breaks record: The number of companies exhibiting on the trade show floor rose 16 percent to 705.

Riviera reports narrower loss: By Liz Benston; Riviera Holdings Corp., which owns the Riviera hotel and casino on the Strip, narrowed its losses in the third quarter as the company's Las Vegas and Colorado casinos became more profitable. But high corporate expenses, including debt payments, kept the company in the red.

Immigrant voters may influence close election: By Timothy Pratt; Immigrants who have become citizens -- a group that is fast-growing, registers to vote in increasing numbers, and votes in even higher numbers -- may play an important role in battleground states such as Nevada in the upcoming elections, a recent report said.

Sprint to lay off 150 employees in Las Vegas: Lost in Las Vegas will be call center jobs, including operator services and positions servicing real estate developers. Also lost will be positions dedicated to retaining customers that have indicated plans to leave for other providers.

Hard Rock agrees to pay $100,000 fine in ad dispute: CARSON CITY -- While admitting no wrongdoing, the Hard Rock hotel and casino in Las Vegas has agreed to pay a $100,000 fine to settle a complaint by the state Gaming Control Board over its advertising policies.

Board OKs cameras in taxicabs: The county's 16 taxi companies will be required to install cameras in nearly 2,500 cabs by April 1 under a regulation approved Tuesday by the Nevada Taxicab Authority.

Groundbreaking set for planned community: When completed, Providence will consist of up to 7,500 homes, 33 acres of parks and 10 acres of trail systems. Plans include two elementary schools and one middle school. Models are expected to open fourth quarter 2005.

Domestic violence funds lost: By Timothy Pratt; Federal funding for a statewide program that gives free legal assistance to victims of domestic violence has been eliminated, leaving thousands of poor women, many of whom are immigrants, more at the mercy of abusive husbands, advocates of the program said.

Columnist Jeff German: Cabdrivers finally get their wish: Just what it did, however, is open to interpretation.

Two local firms recognized for rapid sales growth: ScripNet and Zappos.com were among the top 25 fastest-growing privately held companies with ranks of No. 22 and No. 15 respectively.

Golden Nugget garage faces closure: Jen Lawson; Las Vegas' top building official said Tuesday that shutting down the Golden Nugget parking garage is a possibility following the second accident in which a vehicle crashed through a concrete panel and plunged to the ground.

Hispanics registering in higher numbers than others: By Timothy Pratt; A group working to get the Hispanic community registered to vote and out to the polls issued a report Tuesday that Hispanics have registered in higher numbers than the overall population in recent weeks.

Ralph Siraco's Santa Anita selections: 1st Race -- KAYDARA -- Part of Moss-owned coupled entry with BELVEDERE BELLE, Nakatani/Mandella here, Douglas/Sadler there, double downhill diploma threat. PRINCESS SEQUOIA -- Has good box for down-the-hill maiden special weight run, Flores aboard Ellis trainee for owner Hughes, Princess graduation in opener? Value Play -- PINLOCHLE

Chevalier's best dusts off Franco in tournament: Radio personality Papa Joe Chevalier defeated Mark Franco this past weekend to advance in the Stardust Invitational football handicapping tournament. Both men went 4-3 against the point spread in their seven selections, but Papa Joe hit his best bet, the Kansas City Chiefs minus 4 points, while Franco's best bet missed.

Columnist Jeff Haney: Class action: Listen closely as students file into room 106 of UNLV's Beam Hall, and you'll detect a distinct undercurrent flowing through the routine chatter, a steady thrum like the clacking of chips in a poker room.

Growth Task Force lines up priorities: The Clark County Growth Task Force winnowed its lists of priorities for dealing with natural resources, sprawl and housing affordability issues Tuesday, a critical step toward its ultimate goal of producing policy recommendations for local governments.

Norovirus at Flamingo confirmed: Norovirus is a group of illnesses that cause vomiting, nausea and diarrhea.

Community briefs for October 27, 2004: The League of Women Voters will have Easy Voter and Clark County Voter guides available at locations throughout Southern Nevada, intended to provide nonpartisan information about candidates.

Obituaries for October 27, 2004: Gregory Dean Blunt, 42, of Las Vegas died Saturday in a local hospital. He was born Sept. 13, 1962, in California. A resident for many years, he was an automobile mechanic.

Holiday closings: Safety: Police and fire emergency services as usual. Administrative offices closed.

Noted surgeon, Nevada native Pitts dies: Dr. James D. Pitts, a native Nevadan and graduate of Basic High School who became one of the state's leading general surgeons and president of the Nevada State Medical Association, died Friday of cancer. He was 65.

NRC data access closed to public: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Public access to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's document databases will be down for at least three weeks while it examines them for sensitive information.

Correction: The Sun corrects its errors. If you find a mistake, call 385-3111 to report it.

'Suicide by cop' threat lands sergeant back in jail: Jace Radke; A Nellis Air Force Base master sergeant who had been charged with eight counts of bank robbery and was then released on house arrest -- despite his alleged threat to force police to kill him -- was ordered back to jail Tuesday.

Broncos will lose Griffin for year: Denver Broncos running back Quentin Griffin's strange season came to an end Tuesday when the team's worst concerns were realized.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Junqueira still has shot at Champ Car crown: Bruno Junqueira kept himself in the championship hunt by winning Sunday's Champ Car World Series race in Australia, but will need a little luck to overtake Newman/Haas Racing teammate Sebastien Bourdais for the title.

Sports briefs for October 27, 2004: Faced with the possibility of losing three starting pitchers to free agency, the Atlanta Braves are considering moving bullpen closer John Smoltz back to the starting rotation. It is a move Smoltz wants. Smoltz, 37, hasn't been a full-time starting pitcher since 1999 and has become a successful relief pitcher, accumulating 154 saves.

Playboy Bunnies, brothel plan Nevada Day parade entries: CARSON CITY -- Retired Playboy Bunnies and a brothel parade entry will spice up the Nevada Day celebration in the state's capital this weekend.

Hammargren invites state to his party: Eric Leake; Former Lt. Gov. Lonnie Hammargren is throwing Nevada a birthday party and all of the state is invited.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Plane truth: Sports can be deadly game: There's a black flag flying over NASCAR's Chase for the Cup after a private plane crash claimed the lives of 10 members of its extended family, these belonging to the Hendrick Motorsports team, this weekend near Martinsville, Va.

Business briefs for October 27, 2004: Anthem Inc., seeking to become the biggest U.S. health insurer by buying WellPoint Health Networks Inc., said third-quarter earnings rose 23 percent on membership growth, and full-year profit will climb more than forecast.

Clouds will eclipse shot at moon: But overcast conditions mean valley residents will be stuck watching tonight's lunar eclipse on television. It will occur during tonight's World Series game in St. Louis.

Medical examiner defends his suffocation conclusion: By Matt Pordum; The prosecution's key medical witness in the Ted Binion murder case laid out the reasons behind his conclusion that Binion had been killed by suffocation and then defended it in court Tuesday.

Columnist Muriel Stevens: With credit comes risk of theft: No one is immune to these malefactions. Every time you use a credit card the information you shared can be spirited away. My turn came this past week when Citibank alerted me to some purchases that did not fit my shopping profile (many of us have one).

New Strip venture takes a walk with Newton: By Jerry Fink; A couple of hundred "Wayniacs," members of the Wayne Newton Friends fan club, cheered for their hero Tuesday at the New Frontier as he became the first entertainer whose name will appear on the fledgling Walk of Stars.

Ex-prison guard given probation in bribe case: Molly Ball; A former prison guard convicted of taking bribes to set up conjugal visits will not go to prison himself, but Tuesday he received the maximum possible probation and fines.

Columnist Elizabeth Foyt: Charities draw attention at Forum expansion: Elizabeth Foyt; Temple-like in design, Phase III includes designers and retail stores previously unseen in Las Vegas. Select stores, among them an outlet of shoe designer Guiseppe Zanotti, made their debut with local charitable efforts.

Morgan Stanley joins UBS in Trump loan: Ed Leefeldt; Morgan Stanley will join UBS Inc. in arranging a $500 million loan to developer and television personality Donald Trump's Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc.

Fight schedule: At Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Hollywood, Fla., Kinglsey Ikeke, Van Nuys, Calif., vs. Rene Arostegui, Mexico, 10, middleweights; Randall Bailey, Miami, vs. Ubaldo Hernandez, Mexico, 10, junior welterweights; Elieser Castillo, Miami, vs. Kendrick Releford, Fort Worth, Texas, 12, for the vacant NABF heavyweight title; Dale Brown, Canada, vs. Jermell Barnes, Rochester, N.Y., 12, for the vacant NABO cruiserweight title.

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

Poll finds gaming issue most opposed state question: State Question 712 would create state-tribal compacts to generate funds for education. It also would allow three Oklahoma horse racing tracks to offer electronic gaming and provide for cash payments to Tulsa County's publicly owned track.

Berkley only incumbent to attend UNLV debate: Dan Kulin; What was slated as a night of three debates that would have included another meeting of the candidates in Nevada's most acrimonious congressional race instead turned out to be a civil affair that drew only one incumbent candidate and less than two dozen interested voters.

Office tower encounters neighbors' resistance: Jennifer Shubinski; Crescent Real Estate Equities, the new owner of the upscale Hughes Center office park, has run into problems for future development plans, but this time it's not the cost of land or development -- it's the neighbors.

Candidates call Commission B race brutal: The mudslinging County Commission B race can be described as both brutal and a mess, which are the words the candidates use in their latest fliers.

Collins quickly closes gap commission fund-raising: Clark County Commission candidate Tom Collins, in a tough race for the District B seat that covers North Las Vegas, has nearly overcome a once-significant fund-raising deficit.

Nevada taxable sales again increase: CARSON CITY -- For the eighth straight month, taxable sales in Nevada, one indicator of the economy, posted a double-digit increase in August.

Hansen: Endorsements may hurt Douglas: Douglas, the incumbent, received bipartisan support from Republican Gov. Kenny Guinn and several Democrats, Sen. Harry Reid, former Sen. Richard Bryan, Rep. Shelley Berkley and former Gov. Bob Miller in a statement send out by the Rogich Communications Group.

An analysis of TV ad on Proposition 66: AP; - Titles: "Early Release" and "Criminals."

McCarran continues record passenger pace: Passengers continue to arrive at McCarran International Airport at a record pace as another monthly mark fell in September.

Kerry makes late push in Nevada: Kirsten Searer; Sen. John Kerry, in a late-in-the-game swing through Las Vegas, told a crowd of at least 8,000 at Jaycee Park on Tuesday that President Bush has lost allies, lost jobs and racked up a deficit.

Clark County job growth among highest in nation: Benjamin Grove; Clark County had the second-highest job growth of the nation's largest counties from March 2003 to March 2004, according to Labor Department data released Tuesday.

Letter: Americans must protect their roadless areas: Unfortunately, as populations grow, more natural places for relaxation are destroyed. To counteract this, we can protect our public lands.

Harness-racing applicant touts longer track: That testimony came during a hearing by the state Harness Racing Commission on Bedford Downs, the centerpiece of a proposed mixed-used development on 550 acres three miles east of the Ohio border.

Columnist Adam Candee: The hole Stewart left remains unfilled: Adam Candee; Five years? Really?

Deadwood gaming halls report operating at loss: A report by the South Dakota Gaming Commission said the 112 gaming outlets reported $881,850 in losses in 2003. The Deadwood gaming industry put its loss at $1.1 million in 2002.

Letter: Flu is terror of our making: The buck stops at our president's door. But then again, maybe there wasn't a buck to be made on protecting the American public from the flu.

Editorial: State should consider an EOB takeover: In January the Sun disclosed that the EOB could not account for $2.1 million intended for child-care programs. The story grew after that to include $500,000 in missing Head Start funds, a $500,000 expenditure for a homeless program with no documentation of anyone being helped, a $140,000 federal grant for which there was no accounting, lax oversight of credit cards issued to employees, inefficient delivery of services, several firings and resignations of key employees and an inept board of directors that has, because of resignations and restructuring this year, shrunk from 15 to five members.

Pelosi criticizes Bush stance on stem-cell research: Stephen Curran; Democrats this year are hoping stories like Bryan Jones' will be enough to sway one of the closest presidential races in history.

Columnist Peter Benton: Land, Jablon win Champions Title at LVCC member-guest event: Peter Benton; Absolutely gorgeous weather conditions and a course in pristine shape greeted a capacity field of golfers at the Las Vegas Country Club last week for their 34th annual Member/Guest Golf Tournament.

Murder defendant had history of attacks on victim: Molly Ball; A man accused of killing his girlfriend outside a Las Vegas karaoke bar reportedly shot her in the leg a few days before the killing and had previously been jailed for domestic violence against her, according to court documents.

21 have sought school police chief job: By Emily Richmond; It's been two weeks since the Clark County School District launched its search for a new chief of police and 21 applications have already been received, said George Ann Rice, associate superintendent of human resources.

Compiled by PAUL MONTELLA: AP; 1981 - The Los Angeles Dodgers, behind Pedro Guerrero's five RBIs, beat the New York Yankees 9-2 to take the World Series in six games.

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