Thursday, Sept. 9, 2004 | 11:14 a.m.
Officer's crash causes traffic jam
A Metro Police SWAT officer suffered minor injuries after losing control of a 2002 Ford Explorer on U.S. 95 near Eastern Avenue Wednesday night, hitting a concrete barrier, sending debris into the southbound lanes and causing a massive traffic jam.
The officer, Alan Williams, 35, was heading north on U.S. 95 when his unmarked Metro SUV drifted into the right lane about 9:15 p.m., Metro Detective Bob Holland said.
Williams steered to the left in an attempt to avoid striking the concrete barrier, but over-corrected, causing his vehicle to spin counter-clockwise, police said.
The vehicle veered across the northbound lanes and struck the center concrete barrier then rolled over onto its right side, Holland said.
Williams was treated at University Medical Center.
Debris from the concrete barrier struck about eight vehicles in the southbound lanes, but no one else was injured, he said.
Traffic was backed up on the highway for about three miles while police investigated and cleaned up the crash scene.
The collision is still under investigation, Sgt. Frank Weigand said. Williams told detectives that a vehicle cut him off, causing him to switch lanes quickly and lose control, but a witness who was behind Williams said there were no other cars nearby.
Williams was given a field sobriety test, Weigand said, and was found not to be under the influence of alcohol.
No citations have been issued and Williams has not been placed on leave, but an internal investigation is under way, Weigand said.
Henderson officer injured in crash
A Henderson Police officer was scratched and bruised in a collision with a Ford 350 pickup truck on Boulder Highway near Major Street Wednesday afternoon, Officer Todd Rasmussen, a police spokesman, said.
The officer, whose name was not immediately released, was taken to St. Rose Dominican Hospital for her injuries. She had been traveling about 40 mph, well within the posted speed limit, Rasmussen said.
The driver of the truck that hit the officer was cited for failure to yield the right of way, Rasmussen said.
Tanker explodes on Boulder Highway
A fire that sent smoke billowing across Boulder Highway near Railroad Pass casino closed the artery between the Las Vegas Valley and Boulder City for more than four hours Wednesday.
The driver of a single-tanker tractor-trailer noticed smoke pouring from his rig about 1:30 p.m. and pulled it to the side of Boulder Highway, where it burst into flames in the southbound lanes, the Nevada Highway Patrol said.
The highway was closed in both directions until 6 p.m., Trooper Loy Hixson said.
There were no injuries.
Henderson Fire Department Division Chief Steve Walton said the fire was difficult to extinguish because there were no fire hydrants near the tanker, so water had to be trucked to the scene.
Trial ordered in roommate's killing
A 64-year-old man charged with killing his roommate and placing his body in a freezer will stand trial, Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Douglas Smith ruled Wednesday.
Lawrence Pruett is charged with murder with use of a deadly weapon in the July 3 shooting of his "part-time roommate," 45-year-old Bradley Millisor.
Pruett is scheduled for arraignment before District Judge Sally Loehrer on Sept. 22.
A police arrest report alleges Pruett said he shot Millisor with a shotgun after Millisor tried to attack him with a knife.
Millisor was found dead inside a freezer in front of Pruett's double-wide mobile home near Lake Mead and Nellis boulevards on July 8.
Pruett told police he feared for his life and shot Millisor, then placed his body in the freezer. He paid friends to bury the body in the desert, but they dumped the freezer with the body inside in Pruett's driveway a few days later, according to the arrest report.
Shooting victim is identified
The coroner's office has identified a Saturday shooting victim as Elmer Perry III, 19, of North Las Vegas.
North Las Vegas Police said Perry and another man were shot while sitting in a vehicle at Glider Street and McGovern Avenue. No arrests have been made.
Perry was pronounced dead at the scene. The other victim suffered non- life-threatening injuries.
A pedestrian who died
after he was struck by a hit-and-run vehicle Friday in North Las Vegas has been identified by the coroner's office as 48-year-old Michael Mitchell. The collision occurred on Lake Mead Boulevard near Las Vegas Boulevard North. Marcelino Lopez-Bello was later arrested on fatal hit-and-run charges.
Las Vegas is hiring a contractor
to demolish the Sky-Vue mobile home park and work ought to begin by Friday, city spokesman David Riggleman said Wednesday. A deal with the owners of the property, Sandi and David DiMarco, fell through after the city found that the company the couple had picked for the demolition had outstanding fines and could not get a required permit. The contract has a value of $84,525, Riggleman said.
Firefighters put out a fire Wednesday
in the attic of a two-story wood frame building under construction as Cliff Shadow Condos near Cheyenne Avenue and the Las Vegas Beltway, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue spokesman Tim Szymanski said. Eight units were burned. The condos were 75 percent completed. There were no injuries. The fire appeared to be accidental, Szymanski said. Damages were estimated at $150,000.
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