Print edition for May 4, 2005

51s raise Cain's ERA this time around: Nick Christensen; It was six nights ago that the Las Vegas 51s last faced Matt Cain, the 13th-rated prospect by Baseball America whose fastball reportedly hit 98 mph on the Fresno radar gun.

Horsford: Complaint motivated by politics: Kirsten Searer; CARSON CITY -- A campaign complaint filed in March against Sen. Steven Horsford, D-North Las Vegas, was penned by Chaz Higgs, the husband of state Controller Kathy Augustine.

State argues to get all documents on Yucca Mountain made public: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- An attorney for Nevada was to argue today at an Atomic Safety Licensing Board hearing that the Energy Department needs to make certain Yucca Mountain project documents public.

No cause found for monorail glitch: Stephen Curran; Technicians for the Las Vegas Monorail have not yet determined what caused two separate communication losses this week that brought the system to a halt for more than three hours apiece, a company spokesman said Tuesday.

Police: Highway slaying was not random: Metro Police are treating last week's Interstate 15 shooting as "a targeted homicide" and not a random act, based on evidence of illicit narcotics found in the car driven by the slain woman.

Iowa panel to declare number of new licenses: David Pitt; DES MOINES, Iowa -- After months of keeping their opinions on new licenses to themselves, the time is approaching for members of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission to show their hand on who will get new casino licenses.

Woman shot to death in her Henderson home; kids injured: Jen Lawson; A 46-year-old woman was shot and killed and her two teenage children were injured after someone apparently broke into their Green Valley Ranch home early this morning.

County critical of legislative measures: Stephen Curran; The Clark County Commission on Tuesday sharply criticized a number of legislative bills board members said were not written with the state's largest county in mind.

Education official all smiles during visit with youngsters: It's not every day that an assistant secretary of the Education Department gets serenaded by preschoolers.

Gaels hold off Bonanza: Nick Christensen; Bonanza tried to play tag with Bishop Gorman on Tuesday at Hadland Park.

Columnist Ron Kantowski: Playing Hawaii is good business: The famous sign out on Las Vegas Boulevard South reads "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" or as those who paddle around in outrigger canoes call it, East Honolulu.

Gaming briefs for May 4, 2005: Federal appeals-court judges considering an Indian gambling case said Tuesday that Wyoming's gambling laws are so vague and confusing they might have to ask the state's Supreme Court for clarification.

Nevada's teen birth rate is down 28 percent: By Emily Richmond; Nevada's teen birth rate has dropped 28 percent since 1991, a decline touted by health educators and community advocates observing today's National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy.

Massage parlors lose licenses: The Henderson City Council on Tuesday revoked the licenses of three massage parlors accused of offering prostitution and set a May 17 hearing for an ordinance that would ban new stand-alone massage studios.

JetBlue expansion could mean more Vegas in airline's future: When JetBlue Airways takes delivery of 17 new jets later this year, Las Vegas figures to be one of the destinations at which the respected discount carrier will expand.

Letter: Official wrongly knocks Canada: I remind him that insulin was discovered in Toronto in 1921.

Condo developer raising prices; costs of construction cited: Kevin Rademacher; Developers of the Vegas Grand condominium project are asking potential buyers to rework their reservation agreements in the wake of higher-than-expected construction costs.

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

Ralph Siraco's Hollywood Park selections: 1st Race -- SEEKING RESULTS -- Baze aboard here, draws good rail post for maiden special weight route, Results are Seeking diploma. DEE DEE'S PRINCESS -- Draws alongside top pick for two-turn opener, Bisono here, Princess graduation crown? Value Play -- MINERA

Columnist Jeff German: The little train that couldn't: This is the $650 million transportation system that shut down and stranded dozens of tourists high above the streets a couple of times this week because of what company officials called a "communication breakdown."

Court rules for video lottery terminals: Mark Johnson; ALBANY, N.Y. -- The state's highest court on Tuesday ruled that video lottery terminals and Indian-owned casinos are constitutional, a victory for the legislature and governor who have increasingly relied on gambling to fill budget shortfalls.

She's the one: Adam Candee; The top eight teams and top two individuals not on qualifying teams advance to the NCAA Championship, scheduled for May 18-21 at Sunriver, Ore.

Report shows casinos' strength: By Liz Benston; Americans spent $28.9 billion last year in nontribal casinos across the United States, a 7 percent increase from 2003, according to an industry-funded study issued today.

Sides differ over School Board meeting encounter: By Emily Richmond; A leader of a group of Hispanic parents says Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Agustin Orci yelled at them after they criticized his job performance at Thursday's Clark County School Board meeting.

Cracraft gets back in the game: Jeff Neubert; When he burst back onto the local prep baseball scene this March, Brandon Cracraft appeared to be one of the few athletes with a great natural ability to play the game.

Lawyer to avoid slot cheating charges: By Matt Pordum; A lawyer who previously worked for the Nevada Attorney General's Office, Clark County District Attorney's Office and Public Defender's Office is expected to have charges alleging he cheated slot machines dropped in exchange for testifying against his two co-defendants, his lawyer said.

Columnist Jeff Haney: Do 'correlated' baseball parlays pay off?: To a casual gambler, all parlays are created equal.

Sports briefs for May 4, 2005: Andre Agassi easily defeated French teenager Richard Gasquet 6-2, 6-3 today in the second round of the Rome Masters.

Columnist Adam Candee: Bartkowski's tournament invites high rollers: Adam Candee; It's either 16,666 pulls on the Megabucks slot machine or the entry fee for some high-end golf competition.

Preps: Baseball Top 10: Compiled by the Las Vegas Sun and the Sparks Tribune

Venetian owner sees interest shifting toward northern Strip: By Liz Benston; The owner of the Venetian resort in Las Vegas said early results from the opening of Wynn Las Vegas last weekend bodes well for its own resort.

Wynn plans $345 million expansion in Macau: The casino company led by Steve Wynn has added a $345 million wing to plans for its casino in the Chinese enclave of Macau, where gambling revenue is rising with the influx of Western casinos.

Maintaining momentum goal of MGM executives: By Liz Benston; At the company's annual shareholder meeting, MGM Mirage executives welcomed Mandalay Resort Group into the fold and said the combined company -- the state's largest employer and private investor -- expects to help transform Las Vegas into a "proper city" from simply a tourist playground.

Favre criticizes teammate for missing first minicamp: Brett Favre said he is disappointed with teammate Javon Walker's contract holdout, and suggested the Green Bay Packers could manage without the Pro Bowl wide receiver.

Two women's bodies found at same LV apartment complex: Eric Leake and Mary Manning; Metro Police are investigating the deaths of two women whose bodies were found hours apart at the same southeastern Las Vegas apartment complex Tuesday.

Home sales down slightly: In April, 2,957 single-family homes sold, down 5.4 percent from the 3,127 homes that sold in March, based on records from the association's Multiple Listing Service.

Columnist Peter Benton: New member wins annual tournament: Peter Benton; Mens' First Flight Launce Wallin, 138 Frank Larsen, 140 Bill Blackard, 141 Men's Second Flight Pete Segel, 138 Russ Schroeder, 140 Don Pitchford, 143 Men's Third Flight Allen Vogel, 141 Charles Snavely, 142 Steve Gephardt, 143 Men's Fourth Flight Norval Jessogne, 139* Gary Gardner, 139 Mort Davis, 142 Gross winners Senior Club Frank Larsen, 154 Super Senior Ken Land, 173 Ladies Senior Club Sandy Singer, 166

Moratorium by county would stop development: Clark County commissioners today were expected to approve a moratorium that would, in effect, prevent development in 18 square miles of unincorporated Eldorado Valley as part of a long-term strategy to preserve the no-growth character of Boulder City.

Kerkorian discloses GM investment, plans to double it: Bill Koenig and Jeff Green; Kirk Kerkorian, the billionaire who tried to take Chrysler Corp. private a decade ago, said he planned to double a previously undisclosed stake in General Motors Corp. to 8.8 percent after a plunge in GM shares this year.

Guinn vows to veto bill without rebate: Kirsten Searer; CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn vowed again today that he will veto any budget that does not include a rebate to taxpayers.

Preps: Tuesday's results: Cimarron-Memorial 14, Shadow Ridge 1: W: Muir (5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER). L: Gaskill (3.2 IP, 8 H, 8 ER). 2B: Micco (CMRN), Brundage (CMRN).

Child abuse case against former officer dismissed: By Matt Pordum; A former Metro Police officer, who was fired after allegations surfaced that he burned his 13-year-old son with a hot iron, had his case dismissed on Tuesday.

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Robby Gordon takes his show off the road, again: Despite struggling this season in his second stint as an owner/driver in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, Robby Gordon has filed an entry to race his Trophy Truck in next month's Tecate SCORE Baja 500 desert race in Ensenada, Mexico.

Neuropsychologist makes plea in defense of killer of four men: By Matt Pordum; A defense expert on Tuesday compared Donte Johnson's childhood in South Central Los Angeles to that of a "child soldier" living in war plagued nations such as Sierra Leone and Bosnia.

Obituaries for May 4, 2005: Walter Carter, 77, of Las Vegas died Monday in a local care center. A retired lighting company foreman and a World War II Navy veteran, he was born July 8, 1927, in Brooklyn, N.Y.

No report filed on object found in jury box: By Matt Pordum; Court officials have yet to see an incident report about what appeared to be a used crack pipe that was found in a jury box Monday during a death penalty murder case.

Editorial: Hope for the homeless: The nonprofit organization is receiving financial assistance from area businesses and is expected to receive some funding from Clark County to help with the survey, which is scheduled to begin June 1. This is a positive development for Southern Nevada, where homeless people, including children, are often left to fend for themselves, especially in the city of Las Vegas. This nonprofit group is setting a good example, one that we'd like to see catch on at City Hall.

Editorial: Surpluses, or a mirage?: This sounds like a lot of money with which to begin building up the state's services, which have lost much ground over the years because of inadequate funding. Unfortunately, however, Gov. Kenny Guinn is proposing a $300 million rebate to taxpayers. Also, state law requires a minimum reserve of $126.8 million, which Guinn wants built to $200 million. Money from the surplus is also planned to be used for construction of some state buildings and for paying the $17 million cost of the 2005 Legislature. If all of these expenses are approved, the so-called surplus will be pretty much wiped ...

Henderson plans annual ArtFest: The event will feature work from over 200 national and local artists as well as food and live entertainment for the entire family.

Community briefs for May 4, 2005: UNLV's summer catalog of community interest courses was mailed to former students. The catalog is also available at Las Vegas Clark County libraries, as well as at the Educational Outreach Office at the Paradise Campus, 851 E. Tropicana Ave., across from the Thomas & Mack Center.

Letter: Republic's idea disguises cutback: Cutting back services in the name of improving recycling efforts is simply a smoke screen. The reality is that that we the people will be saddled with the stink and clutter of accumulated garbage. Recycling will suffer too, as it will no longer be separated by the customer. Quite possibly it will end up in the dump. And those big containers Republic Services is offering to provide -- they will end up being blown around the streets.

Proponents, foes square off over minimum wage: CARSON CITY -- Proponents of raising the minimum wage urged a Senate committee Tuesday to hurry up and pass the bill that would boost minimum wage by a dollar to $6.15 an hour.

Health insurers agree to pay more than $80 million: Health Net will give $40 million to pay claims from doctors and up to $20 million for attorneys fees, the company said. It also agreed to create a better definition of medical necessity for procedures that doctors perform and a streamlined system for physician complaints and payments, moves expected to cost more than $80 million over four years.

Legislative briefs for May 4, 2005: The Senate Tuesday voted 20-0 for a bill to stop justice and municipal courts from compromising misdemeanor offenses involving spousal battery.

Columnist Muriel Stevens: No shortage of shopping in Vegas: The Forum Shops and the Appian Way at Caesars Palace, the Grand Canal Shops at the Venetian, The District at Green Valley Ranch, Fashion Show mall, Mandalay Place, the Wynn Las Vegas Esplanade and Desert Passage at the Aladdin are choice locales.

Survey shows expansion, although at a lower rate: The Institute for Supply Management said its index of activity among service companies for April fell to 61.7 from 63.1 a month earlier. Analysts had been estimating the index would ease to 61 in April.

Goodman pitches idea for LV medical center: Kirsten Searer; CARSON CITY -- Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman was at the Legislature on Tuesday to push the idea for a new teaching hospital in downtown Las Vegas.

Office surgeries prompt concern: CARSON CITY -- As doctors perform more surgeries in their offices, an assemblywoman wants to determine if there are more injuries and deaths from those procedures than occur in a hospital or surgery center.

Disneyland at 50: Disneyland at 50

Sheriff, chiefs lobby for tax hike for new officers: CARSON CITY -- Clark County Sheriff Bill Young told a Senate Committee on Tuesday he does "not have enough officers to do the job we're supposed to do."

Big jump in state insurance has retirees in distress: CARSON CITY -- Retired state worker Ellen Nelson says she was shocked when she received notice that her insurance premiums would rise from $78 a month to $470 starting in July.

News briefs for May 4, 2005: A bicyclist was in critical condition Tuesday after he was run over by a truck, Metro Police said.

Letter: Judges are correct to base decisions on Constitution: Imagination is not needed. Such a society does exist today. It's called the United States of America. The basic law is the Constitution. While the Constitution values collective rights, it puts a higher premium on individual rights. That means individual rights cannot be denied simply because the will of the people so desires. The mechanism for protecting these individual rights is the judiciary.

Berkley to push bill to force military burial arrangements: Suzanne Struglinski; WASHINGTON -- The dispute over the final resting place of Marine Lance Corporal Nicholas Anderson, a 2003 Bonanza High School graduate who was killed in Iraq in November, may spur a change funeral arrangement rules for service members killed while on active duty.

It's OK for councilman to campaign for spouse: CARSON CITY -- A city council member may help a spouse in a political campaign in another branch of city government but should not raise money for the campaign, the state Ethics Commission said Tuesday.

Columnist Elizabeth Foyt: 'Epicurean Affair' a standing-room-only success: Elizabeth Foyt; The event, presented at Mandalay Bay's convention center by Van and Joan Heffner of the Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association/Nevada Restaurant Association, was held as an opening reception for the Las Vegas International Hotel & Restaurant Show.

Nifty at 50: Disneyland tidies up the mouse house to herald its golden anniversary: Lisa Ferguson; There were plenty of reasons to question whether Disneyland had much of a future in store on that stiflingly hot summer day nearly half a century ago.

UNLV student flies to scholarship: UNLV undergraduate biology major Archana "Archie" Nelliot, 20, recently won a prestigious national scholarship.