Print edition for July 25, 2005

Fewer schools get high ratings: By Emily Richmond; The Clark County School District expects to have more than a dozen schools identified as "high achieving" under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which recognizes outstanding performance on standardized tests:

NLV cabinet maker to settle suit alleging abuse: The lawsuit alleges the abusive behavior included an incident where Western Casework "agents" took nail guns loaded with 2 1/2 inch nails and shot them at Hispanic workers, who had to duck or hide from the nails.

World Market Center kickoff has ripple effect on tourism: Local tourism experts say today's opening of the World Market Center may have a greater impact than most major conventions because of the co-location effect -- spin-off events and related shows are coming to Las Vegas at the same time as major furniture industry exhibitors.

Sports briefs for July 25, 2005: At Indianapolis, unseeded Robby Ginepri came from a set down to beat one of the top seeds at the RCA Championships for the third consecutive day, winning the second ATP title of his career when Taylor Dent retired from heat illness in the third set Sunday.

Golf briefs July 25, 2005: At Alveslohe, Germany, Sweden's Niclas Fasth made a 10-foot birdie putt on the third playoff hole to beat Angel Cabrera and win the Players' Championship of Europe.

Letter: Effort at hospital is commendable: Every time I called this hospital, the secretaries and nurses went out of their way to assist me. It was shocking, because employees at the trauma center I recently left in Chicago seemed to pride themselves on being rude and discourteous when families called.

Differing reports on golf club development raise new issues: Dan Kulin; Las Vegas officials want to know why there were two versions of a report on the implications of allowing residential development on Billy Walters' Royal Links Golf Club, which is next to the city's sewage treatment plant.

Editorial: A thorough investigation is required: Last year, however, the Clark County Commission, which had the final say on all sales, heard complaints about many of the land transactions. Questions were being raised about whether the public was being cheated. Purchasers of many airport parcels were quickly reselling the land for millions more than they paid for it. Why wasn't the public reaping those millions in the original sale?

CCSN falls behind on nursing professors: Community College of Southern Nevada officials are scrambling to recruit enough nursing professors before fall semester begins next month, but for each new hire there seems to be a resignation, President Richard Carpenter said.

Two-hour comment period on river set up: The federal government is providing two hours Tuesday for Southern Nevada residents to contribute their thoughts toward what ultimately would be a new policy governing shortages along the Colorado River, the source of 90 percent of Southern Nevada's drinking water.

Letter: Many reasons for lack of discipline in classroom: Who is responsible for the fact that teachers are unable to establish authority or maintain effective discipline that once was important in school? Are teachers themselves responsible? Are teacher unions culpable?

NBA took pressure off Oden, Mayo: Nick Christensen; This time last year, Greg Oden, who had just finished his sophomore year of high school, was still fielding questions about the NBA, listening to offers from colleges and showing off why both were interested.

Celebrities come out to protest nuclear power: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- Anti-nuclear activists brought out like-minded celebrities Monday to protest nuclear components of the energy bill and storing nuclear waste on Native American lands.

State sanctions Walgreens pharmacy in NLV: Michelle Swafford; The Nevada State Board of Pharmacy imposed a series of sanctions Wednesday against a local Walgreens pharmacy and its parent company.

Top pick among three Falcons rookies unsigned: Wide receiver Roddy White could be one of three Falcons' draft picks to miss today's season-opening practice after failing to reach contract terms as of late last night.

Local team winning close: Nick Christensen; Maybe it's just some ploy to show prospective college coaches how they respond in clutch situations, or maybe it's just the lack of depth on their team.

Editorial: Lease on life for dogs: The Lied Animal Shelter serves Clark County, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas. The need for the expansion is evident in the growing number of animals that are being brought to the shelter by Animal Control officers or families that had to give up their pets. Last year the shelter took in 23,800 animals and the pace this year is on track to exceed that number. With the expanded facility, the shelter, hopefully, will be able to increase its adoptions and decrease the number of animals that must be euthanized.

Rock slide helps boost city's gambling business: "We've been smiling a lot more" since the slide, says Central City Mayor Buddy Schmalz, who is also a brewmaster at a nearby pub and casino. "I'm laughing a lot more, too."

Columnist Ralph Siraco: Tips for wagering Saratoga's 'Spa' racing season: Ralph Siraco; Last week in this corner we outlined some of the idiosyncrasies of the boutique Del Mar racing season. The seven-week seaside meeting is now wrapping up week No. 1. Racing at the beach in Southern California is as pleasant to the eyes as it can be to the bankroll.

Foxwoods ordered to remove Internet gambing portal: The casino, among the world's largest, markets its "PlayAway" promotion as a way to play slots and card games from home.

Group opposed to merger of health care companies: The physicians' association -- representative of about 250,000 members and a voice for physicians nationally -- said in a news release today that it sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Thursday.

News briefs for July 25, 2005: A 21-year-old Las Vegas man was arrested Sunday in connection with the shooting of a 22-year-old man to death in the pool area of an apartment complex on Craig Road near Nellis Boulevard, Metro Police said.

Red Rock Canyon loop road may remain closed for another week: Federal fire officials said it could be a week before the Red Rock Canyon loop road reopens after flames burned almost 900 acres from a lightning-caused fire on Friday.

Offer of big bonus cited in bribery trial: Eric Tucker; WORCESTER, Mass. -- Lincoln Park's former general manager said he wanted to "take care" of the greyhound track's lawyer by giving him a $1 million performance bonus for his work in the "political arena," according to testimony Friday at the racetrack's bribery conspiracy trial.

LV native among those killed in bombings: The father of the only American known to have been killed in the Egypt bombings said today he last spoke with his daughter by phone hours before the attacks.

Dodgers dump Chen: Nick Christensen; Chin-Feng Chen, the Las Vegas 51s' all-time leader in home runs, RBIs and total bases, was designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.

Upward Bound program paves way for student to attend UNLV: An 18-year-old classical cellist is planning to study music, psychology and architecture at UNLV after completing a program for under-achieving high school students in Las Vegas.

Tilly plays part in poker's popularity: By Liz Benston; For hours on end, the woman sitting near the poker pit at Binion's during the final day of the World Series of Poker tournament sat out of the limelight, willingly letting her boyfriend bask in its glow.

Self-defense claimed in case of body found in apartment: By Matt Pordum; The defense pursued its self-defense case this morning in the trial of Greg Stiegler, accused of killing his roommate and burying the body in concrete under the stairs of their apartment.

Utah fires still burning: About 500 firefighters still battled blazes burning through 22,800 acres of dry brush 10 miles north of St. George, Utah, on Sunday night, the Bureau of Land Management said.

Heat wave taking its toll on automobiles: By Emily Richmond; Some of them are dusty and hot after waiting on the side of the road for a friend to pick them up. Others are sweaty, having abandoned their cars and walked.

More storms may be on the way: After suburban Las Vegas Valley streets turned into torrents Sunday morning, mud and debris remained as Southern Nevada faced another possible round of thunderstorms today, the National Weather Service said.

China keeps many currency controls intact: Elaine Kurtenbach; BANGKOK, Thailand -- Having in one deft move ended the dollar link that anchored the Chinese economy through years of meteoric growth, Beijing is tackling its next big task: managing expectations of what comes next.

Parent firm of Mesquite hospital posts profit: Plano, Texas-based Triad Hospitals Inc. reported the profit after a year-ago loss of $5.2 million, 7 cents per share. The profit includes $5.9 million in discontinued operations from the sale of seven outpatient surgery centers in Phoenix to Banner Health.

Porter says full documents not received: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- His staff may have 1,652 pages of Yucca Mountain project documents to begin to review today, but Rep. Jon Porter is still concerned about the pages that are not there.

Company to consider Whirlpool's sweetened bid: The two appliance makers will begin negotiations toward a formal agreement based on Whirlpool's $18-a-share bid, Newton, Iowa-based Maytag said in a statement released late Sunday, minutes before a deadline Whirlpool set for a reply. Maytag, the No. 3 U.S. appliance maker, rejected Whirlpool's offer of $17 a share in cash and stock on July 21.

Hip-hop stars at home inrap roles: Spencer Patterson; Between sets at Sunday night's "Anger Management 3" tour stop at the Thomas & Mack Center, advertisements for a new video game were shown on video screens throughout the arena.

Used star lot: Warmed-over celebs finding a home all over cable, network TV: Kirk Baird; Cases in point: Trista Sutter, Rachel Hunter, Kelly Monaco, Joey McIntyre, Evander Holyfield and John O'Hurley, the "stars" of ABC's surprise summer reality hit, "Dancing With the Stars."

Birth announcements for July 25, 2005: June 29:

Funds for juvenile facility are lost: Molly Ball; In the chaos of the last days of the legislative session, $1.4 million for Clark County Juvenile Justice Services vanished.

Federal investigators probe NLV airplane crash: Federal investigators began a preliminary examination Sunday of the wreckage of a small plane that crashed Thursday at the North Las Vegas Airport.

Fight schedule: At Albuquerque, N.M. (ESPN), Israel Vazquez, West Covina, Calif., vs. Johnny Tapia, Albuquerque, N.M., 12, for Vazquez's IBF super bantamweight title.

Obituaries for July 25, 2005: Loretta C. Blackburn, 97, of North Las Vegas died Tuesday in North Las Vegas. She was born Aug. 18, 1907, in Batavia, N.Y. A resident for more than 25 years, she was a homemaker.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Devotees launching a crater cause: They know it sounds ridiculous.

Man who threatened passengers, crew gets 27 months: David Kihara; The passenger who threatened a Southwest Airlines airplane with a bomb and fought with the flight crew has been sentenced to more than two years in prison.

Gibson has head start if he runs for governor: Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson, who is mulling a run for governor, has nearly $450,000 left over from his latest re-election campaign in which he raised in excess of $800,000.

Community briefs for July 25, 2005: The American Red Cross will host the third annual "Red Cross Night at Spring Mountain Ranch" Aug. 14, a fundraiser featuring the musical "Guys and Dolls."