Print edition for February 3, 2005

Test Site guards failed attack drill: Guards stationed at the Nevada Test Site to protect the nuclear weapons complex 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas apparently failed a recent test in which they faced a mock terrorist attack.

Neighbors duke it out over high rise: The Clark County Commission considered a dozen applications for new high rises, many of them in or near the Strip, but delayed action on a contentious request that pitted Strip neighbors against each other.

Abraham: Congress should sidestep EPA on Yucca: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Congress -- not the Environmental Protection Agency -- should set a new radiation standard for Yucca Mountain, departing Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said Wednesday.

Columnist Jeff Haney: Toughman Gergen a prisoner of the sport: The boxing career of hard-punching heavyweight Mika Gergen followed a circuitous route before reaching Friday night's scheduled seven-bout card at the Orleans.

Man killed in crash on Interstate 15: Troopers said the minivan, a 2003 Chrysler Town and Country, was traveling on the freeway about 4 p.m. when the vehicle drifted off the roadway into a dirt area. The driver, whose name and age were not available this morning, overcorrected and caused the minivan to crash into a barrier wall, according to an NHP statement.

PRODUCT REVIEW: Microsoft Streets & Trips avoids road to nowhere: AP; Microsoft Corp.'s Streets & Trips 2005 does just that.

City paid $7 million for land in Boyd proposal: Dan Kulin; The Las Vegas City Council on Wednesday indefinitely postponed acting on proposed changes to an 11-year-old downtown land deal with Boyd Gaming Corp. after council members were apparently told the city paid almost $7 million for the 3.4 acres that, under the proposed new agreement, would essentially go to Boyd at a cost of $2 million.

Henderson prepares for St. Pat's parade: Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson will serve as grand marshal of the first-ever St. Patrick's Parade in that city, the Henderson Convention and Visitors Bureau said Wednesday in announcing that it had landed the long-established event.

Nevadans say ground is laid for historic debate in Congress: Benjamin Grove and Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Nevada's congressional delegation agreed that President Bush in his State of the Union speech on Wednesday laid out a framework for a historic debate in Congress on the future of Social Security.

Slaying suspects just wanted to shoot a car: Jen Lawson; Longtime friends Jamar Green and Terrance Bowser told Metro Police they had joked about what it would be like to shoot a vehicle, according to the police report about their arrests.

BLM's latest land auction brings in $602.49 million: Jennifer Shubinski; The developer who bought the largest land parcel at Wednesday's federal land auction said he is disappointed in President Bush's plan to funnel that money, which is now designated for Nevada, to the federal treasury to ease the nation's soaring deficit.

Teen who killed woman in crash could be out of prison soon: By Matt Pordum; A teen who crashed a stolen car while fleeing from police, killing a woman in another vehicle in 2003, could be out of prison before the end of the year.

Atkinson Gates kept at UMC overnight: Paramedics took Atkinson Gates to UMC shortly after noon Wednesday after the 12-year veteran of the commission complained of chest pains. County officials said late Wednesday that the commissioner was being kept overnight at the hospital for tests and observation.

News briefs for February 3, 2005: A Las Vegas man was in critical condition this morning after his moped was struck by a pickup truck Wednesday afternoon.

Business and labor group considers building hospital: Michelle Swafford; The Health Services Coalition, a group of 23 union and employer groups that represent about 320,000 valley residents, is considering building its own hospital to save costs.

UNLV hotel college looks at Singapore: As tourism in Asia explodes, UNLV's Harrah's Hotel College is jockeying itself to offer its hotel management courses at what officials believe is the gateway to the continent -- the island republic of Singapore.

Black groups want ex-superintendent to be recognized: By Emily Richmond; During his tenure as Clark County School District superintendent from 1978 to 1981, Claude Perkins increased graduation and attendance requirements, established a stricter campus dress code and reduced class sizes.

Decision on Tropicana delayed: By Liz Benston; The owner of the Tropicana in Las Vegas said Wednesday it will postpone until fall a decision on whether the company will redevelop the aging resort.

Deadlines set on malpractice cases: Molly Ball; Faced with a glut of medical malpractice lawsuits, the county court on Wednesday began a new initiative to process the cases by setting firm deadlines to get them resolved.

State welfare agency seeks budget increase: CARSON CITY -- A family of three on the welfare rolls in Nevada receives an average of $348 a month from the state, an amount that hasn't changed since 1992, and Nevada's per-family average ranks it 32nd among the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Retailer's January sales rise: The discounter had forecast a gain of 2 percent to 4 percent from a year earlier. Wal-Mart's same-store sales rose 5.7 percent in January 2004.

Tarkanian sworn in to office: Tarkanian, a member of the Clark County School Board during the 1990s, said she was honored, exhilarated, and feels a "heavy responsibility" as the new Ward 1 representative on the council.

Rookie once more: Although Michel Jourdain Jr. turned 165 laps on Las Vegas Motor Speedway's 1.5-mile oval during last September's Champ Car World Series race, the experience didn't help him in the least when he showed up Wednesday to test his NASCAR Busch Series car.

Obituaries for February 3, 2005: Cora Mae Addison, 56, of Las Vegas died Jan. 26 in Las Vegas. A resident for one year, she was born Nov. 2, 1948, in Los Angeles.

LV to wait a month before voting on Lamb Park's future: Dan Kulin; Discussion and a decision on an agreement that would make Las Vegas the owner of Floyd Lamb State Park was put on hold Wednesday, as expected, after some City Council members expressed concern about the management and cost of taking over the large park.

Two buildings given grants for downtown facelift: Dan Kulin; A planned art gallery and an office building were the first recipients of $50,000 in matching grants from a Las Vegas program intended to encourage downtown businesses to fix up their properties, city Office of Business Development Director Scott Adams said.

High school to honor O'Callaghan: Mike O'Callaghan exemplified the ideals to which small-town America has long aspired.

Virgin River flood plans considered: Mesquite officials and federal agencies mapped an approach to protect the flood-damaged Virgin River Wednesday afternoon before the spring snowmelt begins within weeks.

Fossils, plants keys to NLV expansion plans: Eric Leake; North Las Vegas plans to develop 2,300 acres north of the city but first must decide what to do with rare plants and fossils recently found there.

Sanford: UNLV has reclaimed city recruiting: Steve Guiremand; Corey Anderson, wr, 6-1, 170, Birmingham HS, Lake Balboa, Calif.

Ward 6 candidate list grows: Mary Gillins is now the ninth candidate running for the Ward 6 seat, which incumbent Councilman Michael Mack has said he will not seek to retain.

Report addresses growth problems in Clark County: David Kihara; Water conservation, maintaining affordable and attainable housing and finding cures for the county's growing traffic problems are a few of the many issues discussed in a report presented to the Clark County Growth Task Force on Wednesday.

Sunrise awaits trauma center OK: David Kihara; Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center has recently completed its Level 2 trauma center but is currently waiting for the state to grant it a license to open and operate, county and medical officials said.

Editorial: Placing it all on red: The president is right in pointing out that one day, based on the changing demographics in this nation, Social Security will realize a cash flow problem. With each passing year, millions upon millions of the "baby boom" generation are getting closer to retirement at the same time that fewer Americans are entering the workforce. But there is abundant evidence that Bush is manufacturing this so-called "crisis." For example, if present projections hold true, the government would not reach a point of having to reduce full benefits until 2042 at the earliest. That's hardly a crisis in 2005.

Lottery chief not happy with eScratch performance: But with sales well below expectations, and retailers less than thrilled about paying out "jackpots" that in some cases won't even buy a pay telephone call, eScratch has yet to pay off big for the state.

Proposed development concerns residents, environmentalists: Mount Charleston residents and environmentalists expressed concern of the proposed development in the northwest of Las Vegas after a federal land auction sold a 1,710-acre parcel at the gateway to their Spring Mountain homes.

Testing process may have led to excessive monorail wear: Stephen Curran; The lengthy recommissioning process that brought the Las Vegas Monorail back up to speed in December may have contributed to the greater-than-expected wear that kept the system closed for more than 13 hours Wednesday, county engineers said.

Editorial: Bush again jabs Nevada: In 1998 Congress passed the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act, which stopped the years-old practice of practically giving away federal land to developers. The act also compensated Nevada for the fact that 87 percent of its land is federally owned, which deprives the state of tax-generating enterprises. It did this by requiring that all proceeds from federal land sales must be used for public purposes in Nevada. Since then 5 percent of all sales have gone to Nevada's schools, 10 percent to water and airport infrastructure and 85 percent to environmental, conservation and recreation projects. Nevada fought long and ...

Letter: Kennedy won't 'pay any price': Compare that to the un-American, radical and leftist statements of the last few days from his brother Ted. What a disgrace he is to the memory of his brother. What a disservice he does to our troops.

LV's municipal pool wins another national award: The city aquatics unit, which is part of the Department of Leisure Services Recreation Division, won the National Recreation and Park Association's 2005 Excellence in Aquatics Award. The award will be presented on March 4, during the 20th National Aquatic Conference at the Riviera Hotel Convention Center.

Krolicki softening stand on Millennium program: CARSON CITY -- State Treasurer Brian Krolicki is softening his stance on a plan to bail out the financially troubled Millennium Scholarship program and he is proposing additional restrictions on the students.

Lawmakers: Lottery game would help fight cancer: Senate President Emil Jones and other legislators from both parties proposed a new Lottery game Tuesday dubbed "Ticket for the Cure" that they say could raise at least $3 million a year for breast cancer prevention and treatment.

Framing the Discussion: Third Thursday feeds growing art interest in Las Vegas: By Kristen Peterson; A panel of savvy businessmen and local art collectors were discussing their art collections and their passion for collecting.

Cheyenne extends Palo Verde's skid: Nick Christensen; Paul Aznarez sat silently in the weight room at Cheyenne High School, surrounded by his coaches but not talking 20 minutes after Palo Verde's third consecutive loss.

Zoning board approves two casino sites in Vicksburg: The casinos, if built, would be Vicksburg's fifth and sixth and the first since 1994.

Super Bowl a sure bet to tempt problem gamblers: John Curran; EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP, N.J. -- One by one, they filed in for a Tuesday night meeting of Gamblers Anonymous.

Community briefs for February 3, 2005: A tour of Scotty's Castle, located in the northern end of Death Valley National Park, will cost an extra $2 beginning Monday.

Preps: Boys' top ten: Compiled by the Las Vegas Sun and the Sparks Tribune

Corrections: Corrections

Mentally ill continue to flood emergency rooms, panel says: David Kihara; A fundamental breakdown in services for the mentally ill is continuing to plague the county hospital's emergency services, leading many emergency rooms to continue to be filled to capacity with mentally ill patients at a cost to others, members of the county health district's Medical Advisory Committee said on Wednesday.

Internal affairs finds evidence of misconduct against lieutenant: Lt. Dave Braden was suspended after his wife, Hanna Braden, was arrested in October for drug trafficking.

LV Marines help to protect supply routes in Fallujah: Dick Benoit; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Bradley Fleegle, son of John Fleegle of Las Vegas, and Lance Cpl. Jeffrey Roberson, a 2002 graduate of Eldorado High School, are with more than 2,100 Marines and sailors assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

Ensign asks Interior Department to look into McCarran land deal: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., on Wednesday asked the Interior Department's inspector general to investigate a controversial Clark County land deal.

'Big 3' carry Durango to victory at Western: Mike Sims; The Durango boys' basketball team has not shown its usual dominance the past few seasons. The Trailblazers have been struggling to make the state tournament, and competing with Bishop Gorman in their division doesn't help.

Letter: Bush did not properly plan: Instead of taking his responsibility seriously he prematurely declared victory. He got all dressed up for his Hollywood-style "Mission Accomplished" show. But he had not read the full script, and did not know what was coming -- that America would lose so many precious sons and daughters. The price for Iraq's oil was more than Americans would want to pay.

Governor: Arbitration likely in dispute over gaming payments: The Ho-Chunk refused to make a $30 million payment due to the state last year, citing a state Supreme Court decision it said invalidated a portion of its gaming compact requiring the tribe to hand over the money. It also does not plan to make another $30 million payment June 30, citing the same reasons.

History not long, but still heated in Centennial-Shadow Ridge rivalry: Jeff Neubert; The rivalry isn't a long, storied one, but it is a bitter one nonetheless.

Utah swing pivotal for Lady Rebels: Adam Candee; She sees progress, for certain, but Lady Rebels coach Regina Miller is never too effusive with praise for her team.A week ago today, UNLV upset New Mexico at the Thomas & Mack Center, then came back Saturday and easily swept away Air Force to climb back into the Mountain West Conference race after opening with three losses in a row.

Preps: Wednesday's results: Cheyenne 50, Palo Verde 41: CHEY: Jarrell Holman 17 pts. PV: P'Allen Stinnett 15 pts.

Woman to be key witness in killing of drug dealer: By Matt Pordum; The fate of a man on trial for killing a cocaine dealer at the Capri Motel in March 2002 could rest on the testimony of the prosecution's key witness, the same woman the defense contends actually committed the killing with her boyfriend.

New consul for Mexico vows to help oppressed: By Timothy Pratt; Mariano Lemus Gas, the new consul for Mexico in Las Vegas, said Wednesday he will be seeking new ways to help the more vulnerable sectors of the Las Vegas Valley's Mexican population, including the homeless, day laborers and victims of domestic violence.

Boulder City festival is long on shorts: But frustration at the lack of attention given to short films inspired this Ohio-born animator to create a festival dedicated to short films: The Dam Short Film Festival, which runs Friday through Sunday in Boulder City.

Koval-Tropicana tops collision list: The intersection was the site of seven collisions last month, according to the list released Wednesday.

Sports briefs for February 3, 2005: Before the month is out, NBA star Kobe Bryant will probably have to answer the first official questions about his assault case since talking with investigators the night after he was accused of rape in 2003.

Letter: Rationale for invading Iraq was all wrong: By all authoritative accounts, his stated rationale for invading Iraq has not stood the scrutiny of experts. They have proven that there were no weapons of mass destruction and that there were no ties between Saddam Hussein's regime and al-Qaida. One can only conclude that his premises were false and that he led the nation into an invalid war -- one that has cost billions of taxpayers' dollars and thousands of lives.

Kansas coalition seeks expanded gambling: John Milburn; TOPEKA, Kan. -- Gambling lobbyists trotted out a new proposal for state-owned casinos on Wednesday, arguing they would provide more money for education while tapping into a lucrative tourism industry.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Response has led to vicious cycle: Since I profiled them in Valley Views on Jan. 6, the Freecycle people have been responsible for some of the most thought-provoking e-mail I have ever received.

Plan to rebate car registrations is under fire: By Cy Ryan; CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn has a lot of work ahead of him in convincing state legislators to approve his plan to rebate $300 million to Nevada motorists.

Three men get 2-5 years in attack on house sitters: By Matt Pordum; Three men who in May broke into a residence thinking they were going to rob a drug dealer, but instead ended up shooting at and assaulting two house-sitters will each spend at least two years in prison.

Pulte earnings soar 60 percent: Sarah Karush; DETROIT -- Pulte Homes Inc. said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter earnings climbed 60 percent beating Wall Street forecasts -- despite a high cancelation rate in Las Vegas -- as domestic homebuilding revenues were fueled by both higher prices and more sales.

NASDAQ requests more information on application: With the delay, the company said in a statement that it "can give no assurance as to if and when the application to the OTC Bulletin Board will be approved."

Local airlines to add new markets: Scenic Airlines will offer daily nonstop round trips from the North Las Vegas Airport to Elko beginning March 2, while Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air plans twice-weekly service between McCarran International Airport and south central Washington's Tri-Cities Airport beginning April 7.

PacifiCare profit doubles: The Cypress, Calif.-based company today reported its net income rose to $72 million, or 76 cents per share, compared with $31.5 million in the year-ago fourth quarter. The 2004 quarter included $2.6 million in post-tax costs related to refinancing the company's credit to acquire American Medical Security Group. The 2003 quarter included a $17.5 million post-tax cost related to the redemption of $175 million in debt.

Preparers trying to get taxpayers to file sooner: Kevin Rademacher; It's not going to alleviate the April rush, but tax-industry officials are trying to get clients fired up about filing early.

Sprint earnings almost quadruple: OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Sprint Corp. said today that fourth-quarter earnings almost quadrupled on a record quarterly increase in wireless customers.

McCarran updates parking pay system: McCarran International Airport has unveiled a new automated parking pay station system for passengers using the international and charter terminal.