Print edition for June 14, 2005

Base to be named after Creech: Jeff Donaldson; The air base at Indian Springs will get a new name on June 20 -- a sign of the auxiliary field's growing role in the Air Force's mission, officials at Nellis Air Force Base announced Monday.

Dolphins starting to warm to Ricky's return: When Ricky Williams abruptly retired just days before training camp last summer, the prevailing notion was the star running back would never be accepted back by the Miami Dolphins teammates he deserted.

Group may increase oil output: But economists dismissed the move to lift the official quota to 28 million barrels a day, noting that the 10 member nations bound by it are already pumping that much. They said oil markets -- and drivers suffering sticker-shock at the gas pumps -- are unlikely to see much of a difference if the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries takes the expected step at its meeting Wednesday.

County was ready to enforce anti-kickback rule: Mary Manning, Stephen Curran and Ed Koch; Clark County had been poised to enforce a rarely used, 20-year-old ordinance barring strip clubs from giving cabdrivers bounties for bringing them customers but backed off late Monday, apparently to ward off a potential cabbie strike.

Regent's testimonial for grandson sparks ethics questions: University Regent Jack Lund Schofield's personal endorsement of his chiropractor grandson has raised some eyebrows about the propriety of the plug.

Police seek link with three recent shootings in one area: David Kihara; Metro Police are trying to determine whether some kind of gang warfare is ongoing in a neighborhood between the UNLV campus and Sunrise Hospital.

Bidders lining up for chance at 2,000 acres in Laughlin: Kevin Rademacher; On Wednesday the Bureau of Land Management will auction off more than 2,000 acres in Laughlin.

Columnist Jeff German: County eases up on cabbies: That's when Gov. Kenny Guinn announced he was vetoing a transportation bill that passed the Legislature in its waning days with a secret amendment barring cabbies from receiving the gratuities.

Rogers pushes raise for Harter: University system Chancellor Jim Rogers wants to bolster UNLV President Carol Harter's salary -- for the second time in less than a year.

Moore will go pro after Pinehurst: Moore, the most decorated student-athlete in UNLV history, has accepted a sponsor's exemption to the Barclays Classic on the PGA tour at Westchester Country Club in Harrison, N.Y., June 20-26.

Sports briefs for June 14, 2005: The College World Series is practically an annual destination for Texas and Arizona State. For most of the other six teams in college baseball's championship round, Omaha is largely unfamiliar territory.

Final payment made in $34 million settlement: Escobar Chanos said $8.5 million went to Southwest Gas, $10 million to Nevada Power Co. and $15.5 million was distributed to large commercial customers such as hotels and industries.

EEOC overhaul plan adds Las Vegas office: Alana Roberts; The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's plan to restructure and streamline its operations could include a new local office in Las Vegas.

World Market Center work continues: World Market Center work continues

Guinn signs bill moving primaries up to August: CARSON CITY -- With one exception since 1909, Nevada's primary election has always been held in September.

Officials have to eat centennial cake cost: Dan Kulin; What was billed as the world's largest cake surprisingly came with a bill -- $95,000.

Inmate with TB appears in court: Molly Ball; A jail inmate with contagious tuberculosis was taken to court Monday morning despite a judge's order of quarantine, potentially exposing lawyers, court workers and other criminal defendants to the disease, officials said.

Bally's could be imploded, rebuilt: By Liz Benston; Harrah's Entertainment Inc. is contemplating a major renovation of its Bally's resort on the Strip that might involve imploding it and building a Horseshoe-brand hotel, the company's top executive said Monday.

Number of Las Vegas visitors rises in April: Kevin Rademacher; On the heels of a strong National Association of Broadcasters convention and publicity surrounding opening of Wynn Las Vegas, visitor volume in April reached 3.29 million, up 1.5 percent from the same 2004 month, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority said Monday.

First subpoena to be issued in Yucca e-mail investigation: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- U.S. Geological Survey scientist Joe Hevesi is to be subpoenaed today to appear at a June 29 congressional subcommittee hearing to discuss his involvement with possibly falsified scientific research used to support the Yucca Mountain nuclear dump.

Laborers Union election stands: Alana Roberts; A federal judge has decided not to rerun an election of officers for the Laborers Union Local 872, after a union member complained to the U.S. Labor Department that the election was improperly run.

Bill to help problem gamblers among 44 more signed by Guinn: CARSON CITY -- A new program that could help more than 50,000 pathological gamblers has been signed into law by Gov. Kenny Guinn.

Winning Pair: Bellagio thrives in partnership with Museum of Fine Arts, Boston: Sun Staff; In its second partnership with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art last weekend, opened "The Impressionist Landscape from Corot to Van Gogh," a 34-piece collection of 19th-century French painting.

Henderson's Baker bowls over local competition: Tim Mullin; Like any other bowler at the American Bowling Congress Senior Masters, Henderson resident Dick Baker stepped onto the lane, put his bowling balls on the rack, turned his cell phone off and began to stretch before the start of the first day of qualifying on Sunday.

Former U.S. attorney, magistrate Ward dies at 81: Joseph L. "Joe" Ward, who as a U.S. attorney and a U.S. magistrate in Las Vegas sought to rid the casino industry of mob corruption, died Saturday at a Las Vegas hospice. He was 81.

Woman who smothered son sentenced: By Matt Pordum; A 39-year-old woman who said a devil voice told her to smother her 9-year-old son was sentenced to jail time, inpatient mental health treatment and five years probation by a judge on Monday.

Immunization schedule for June 14, 2005: HENDERSON PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER: 129 W. Lake Mead Parkway, Building A, Suite 10, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., through Friday.

Repair of leaks will slow traffic in airport tunnel: Stephen Curran; The drops of water seeping through the airport connector tunnel leading from I-215 East to the Strip are nothing to worry about, McCarran International Airport officials said Monday.

Reid praises nuke industry, but pushes Yucca alternative: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, offered rare -- if lukewarm -- words of praise for the nuclear industry Monday.

State, pueblo to meet for settlement conference: A settlement conference scheduled for June 17 will be the first court action in the 2000 casino revenue-sharing case since late April, when a federal judge halted proceedings saying that serious negotiations between the parties were under way.

Retail sales, wholesale prices fall in May: Reduced spending on vehicles, fuel and department-store merchandise pulled down sales by 0.5 percent after a 1.5 percent increase in April that was the biggest since September, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Prices paid to producers fell 0.6 percent, led by the biggest drop in energy costs in two years.

Editorial: Happy hour at the grocery store?: Compare the Nevada Legislature's decision not to set guidelines to a recently passed law in Arizona that permits grocery stores to allow alcoholic drinks to be sampled. According to a story in the Arizona Daily Star newspaper in Tuscon, samples there will be limited to 3 ounces of beer, 1 ounce of wine or a half-ounce of liquor each day per customer. And each store can have just 12 sampling events every year and each of them can last no more than three hours. Even with these restrictions, local law enforcement officials in Arizona are worried because there is no ...

Walken to be honored at CineVegas: For ticket information, go to: www.cinevegas.com or call 992-7979. Event highlights include:

Wednesday's horse racing entries: Post Time 1:20 p.m.

Columnist Susan Snyder: Amid trees, hotel is sprucing up: Under a brilliant blue sky, Phillips and other crafts vendors breathed deeply of the clean mountain air and talked quietly with shoppers and passersby.

News briefs for June 14, 2005: Three children, including a 4-year-old who suffered critical injuries, were taken to University Medical Center after three vehicles crashed in northwest Las Vegas, Metro Police said.

Gladiators will retain coach James for second season: Adam Candee; The "Seinfeld" of coaching mysteries is over and just like the TV show, it was a story about nothing.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Harvick lashes out at Speed Channel for reporting rumor: Kevin Harvick angrily denied a rumor that he would replace Rusty Wallace in the No. 2 Penske Racing Dodge when Wallace retires at the end of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup season.

Community briefs for June 14, 2005: The Las Vegas Department of Leisure Services Aquatics Unit offers families the opportunity to build their own boats to parade and race in the second annual Splash Box Derby scheduled for Saturday at the Pavilion Center Pool, 101 S. Pavilion Center Drive. Entrants will check in at 5 p.m. with the parade beginning at 5:30 p.m. and races starting at 6:15 p.m. Food, beverages and commemorative photos will be available for purchase. The $7 registration fee per floating creation includes admission for a family of up to four. The public is welcome to attend the event and watch the competitions. ...

Editorial: Questions in girl's suicide: Her mother said Brittany's emotional troubles began around age 9, when she was diagnosed with a mental illness, and had plunged to new depths after the assault. When the illness was dormant, the mother described Brittany as an outgoing, charming child. But there was another Brittany, the one her mom found bloodied in March from a suicide attempt. After that incident, the girl spent 10 days at a private psychiatric hospital. Upon discharge, Brittany showed improvement -- for awhile. But on April 2 she ran away again. When she returned April 11, her mother, sensing she needed constant supervision, called ...

Policy restricts sales of land for gaming: Marc Levy; HARRISBURG, Pa. -- When the Legislature directs the state to sell off a parcel of surplus land, future buyers will have to pay a premium if the land is to be used for gambling.

Guest columnist Linda Frohlich-Todd: It's a time in my career of hits and Mrs.: Mrs. Frohlich-Todd.

Soccer clubs sue companies on image rights: Dutch champion PSV Eindhoven joined Juventus in the legal action, which was filed in Paris and Liege courts, Juventus said. Jean-Louis Dupont, a lawyer for the G14 group of leading European soccer clubs, will represent the two teams, it added.

Letter: Scrubs shouldn't leave hospitals: What type, and how many, potent germs are contracted outside and transmitted to patients by this careless practice? If there isn't a law to forbid staff from wearing their scrubs outside before going to their hospital duties, then there certainly should be one.

Obituaries for June 14, 2005: Margery Tanner Babcock, 79, of Las Vegas died Wednesday in Las Vegas. She was born July 6, 1925, in Salt Lake City. A resident for 63 years, she was a hospital dietician.

BLM extends public comment on proposed water project: The Southern Nevada Water Authority has applied to the Bureau of Land Management for temporary and permanent rights-of-way to build and operate a pipeline on public lands to bring water from rural areas to Las Vegas.

Letter: Evangelical movement is inconsistent: Members of this movement speak of Christian values and Christian morals as though Christianity possesses a monopoly on morality, which it doesn't. In fact I sometimes question their moral values. For instance, just how moral is it to deny research that could prolong and improve human life? This movement takes a strong position against embryonic stem cell research. While there is no scientific consensus as to when life begins, they base their position on the Bible's teaching that life begins at conception.

Murder-plot suspects with ties to club will stand trial: Annie Flanzraich; Three people who allegedly participated in a plot to kill a man who bad-mouthed a strip club will stand trial, a Boulder City judge ruled Monday.

City building revenue with land lease deals: As the June 7 election results showed, Boulder City's land may not be for sale, but it's definitely up for lease.