Print edition for May 21, 2007

Proposed budget provides no relief from swollen caseloads for DA, Public Defender: Sam Skolnik; Local prosecutors and public defenders have gotten short shrift from county budgeters this year, officials say, placing more stress on two overworked offices.

Prosecutors try to block attorney from working on murder case: By Sam Skolnik; Prosecutors are demanding that a prominent Las Vegas attorney be barred from representing a defendant in the high-profile Palomino Club murder case, claiming he has a conflict of interest by also representing the defendant's father.

End of session canbe confusing time in the capital: Michael J. Mishak; CARSON CITY - Sheila Leslie doesn't have time to talk.

Letter: Tesla's influence bears a reminder: Whether it is Hoover Dam that supplies megawatts of hydroelectric power, the beautiful neon lights that give this city its reputation as the "City of Lights," Nellis Air Force Base and McCarran International Airport, which both depend heavily on radar and radio frequency communications, or the more "mundane" inventions that we all take for granted but would not be able to do without (such as air conditioning which uses electric motors), we all owe Nikola Tesla a tremendous debt of gratitude for his tireless yet often unknown service to humanity.

With Internet, dealers turn the tables on Wynn: By Liz Benston; Days after casino boss Steve Wynn notified dealers in a closed-door meeting that frontline supervisors would be included in their tip-pooling agreements, allegations were posted on a Web site popular among dealers that Wynn insulted them for taking huge tips from players.

For sale soon at Legislature: Nevada wine, straight from California: CARSON CITY - Lawmakers may whine about not enough money to pay for highways, prisons and education, but they have stumbled across a new revenue stream for the state's official gift shop: Selling wine - and maybe California wine at that - labeled with the Nevada state seal.

FLASHPOINT for May 21, 2007: This is the day Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki has been dreading for weeks. Ever since his successor as treasurer, Kate Marshall, raised questions about potential improprieties while Krolicki held the office, the lieutenant governor has insisted he did everything "by the book." Today in Carson City an audit will be released that was commissioned because of the allegations that Krolicki, as treasurer, circumvented state spending procedures on a college savings plan that coincidentally featured him in ads. A subcommittee of lawmakers will hear about the audit, which reports in the capital say is fairly scathing about how money was spent. ...

Editorial: Cutting out safety: Internal company e-mails obtained by a House committee that is investigating the 2006 shutdown show that BP field managers were highly concerned that corporate-mandated budget cuts were preventing workers from performing needed corrosion maintenance, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.

Letter: Dance video game would be good for seniors: OK, what about us older folks, who already have too much cellulite, are approaching the age of heart problems and the diabetes needs reduction? From a psychological standpoint, Baby Boomers such as myself were taught that we were supposed to stand against the high school walls until a guy comes up and asks you to dance - but thankfully younger women simply get out and dance with themselves.

Bugles fade, worries sounded: The Memorial Day remembrance ceremony at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City will be at 1 p.m. May 28. At 7:30 a.m. May 26, the placing of American flags on each of the nearly 21,000 graves will begin.

Editorial: Rewarding red tape?: While the VA has been praised by medical experts for the quality of its health care, many veterans have told shocking stories about the ridiculously long delays they have endured to access that care.

Letter: Grim consequences for taking rural water: What green vegetables were there looked limp, old, dry and unappetizing. Fruit choices were sparse. I was not able to find anything that I was willing to buy. The automatic produce watering system was off and foods had not been replenished.

Editorial: CIA must come clean: Unfortunately, the CIA remains the only counterterrorism agency that has not released any portion of its internal investigation related to the attacks. We agree with members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence who are seeking to have the CIA declassify the executive summary of the agency's probe, which studied the conduct of CIA officials before and after New York City and Washington were attacked.

Reel awards to honor the best fake celebrities: By Jerry Fink; What: 16th Annual Reel Awards

Ron Kantowski spent a recent Thursday night at Cashman Field trying to answer the question ...: Remember when the announcer used to say, "If you're scoring at home, that's a passed ball?" Well, my dad didn't score at home. He wasn't that obsessed. But the ballpark, that was another story.

Jeff Haney on why it's likely that the NBA Finals will be played between the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs: The San Antonio Spurs were installed by oddsmakers as roughly a 4-1 favorite to get past the Utah Jazz before Sunday's Game 1 of the Western Conference finals, with adjusted series odds expected to be released today in Las Vegas sports books.