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RANGE SHOWDOWN-RACIST COMMENTS
Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy defends race remarks
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Nevada rancher at the center of a feud over cattle grazing on public land is defending himself from sharp criticism over comments he made about slavery.
Cliven Bundy had told reporters near his ranch 80 miles from Las Vegas that he wonders whether black people are better off now or when they were slaves in the South.
On Thursday, he insisted that he's not saying people should be slaves.
Politicians including Nevada Republican Sen. Dean Heller are condemning the remarks Bundy made last weekend. They were first published Wednesday by The New York Times.
Earlier, Heller called Bundy's defenders "patriots" for standing up against the government.
Bundy is a hero to some for resisting a Bureau of Land Management roundup of cattle that the federal agency says he lets trespass on public land.
COURTHOUSE POWDER
Substance at Reno federal courthouse is sugar
RENO, Nev. (AP) — A white substance that spilled from an envelope caused some anxious moments at the Reno federal courthouse before hazardous materials experts determined it was sugar.
Reno Fire Division Chief Dana Tucker tells the Reno Gazette-Journal that two people came in contact with the substance when the envelope was opened Thursday. About 16 people on the third floor were isolated while the material was tested.
The rest of the courthouse remained open.
In January the Nevada Supreme Court in Carson City was evacuated after a white powder was sent in an envelope with a note saying it was anthrax.
It turned out to be talcum powder.
PALIN POSTERS-SEX LINE
Bogus Palin posters at UNR have sex line number
RENO, Nev. (AP) — University of Nevada, Reno officials want to know who is behind phony fliers advertising an appearance by former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.
Calling the number listed for ticket information connects to a telephone sex line.
The Reno Gazette-Journal reports UNR officials issued an apology Wednesday, calling the obvious prank distasteful.
The flier falsely claims that Palin is coming to the campus May 25 to speak in the Joe Crowley Student Union's Grand Ballroom on "the role of feminism in modern politics."
It bears UNR's logo at the top and says the talk would be presented by the UNR and the Associated Students of the University of Nevada.
EARNS-LAS VEGAS SANDS
Sands 1Q profit beats predictions thanks to Macau
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Casino giant Las Vegas Sands Corp. says its first-quarter net income rose 36 percent due to a strong performance in Macau.
Billionaire CEO Sheldon Adelson says the company delivered growth in every sector of business in Macau, the only place in China where gambling is legal. Sands derives a majority of its revenue from the enclave but also owns properties on the Las Vegas Strip and elsewhere.
Sands reported Thursday that it earned $776.2 million, or 95 cents per share, in the January-March quarter. That's up from $572 million, or 69 cents per share, the year before.
Excluding one-time items, profit came to 97 cents per share.
Revenue rose 21 percent to $4 billion.
Analysts polled by FactSet predicted profit of 92 cents per share on revenue of $3.9 billion.
DEATH PENALTY TRIAL
Ex-Marine sentenced to die in sailor's slaying
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A federal jury has sentenced an ex-Marine to death for murdering a fellow service member in 2009, one among a series of violent, sexually motivated attacks he committed over the years.
Twenty-five-year-old Jorge Torrez of Zion, Ill., is the first person since 2007 to be sentenced to death at the federal courthouse in Alexandria. He will join 59 other inmates on federal death row, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
After Torrez was found guilty earlier this month of Navy Petty Officer Amanda Snell's murder, Torrez ordered his lawyers not to put on any defense or question the government's case during the trial's sentencing phase.
Prosecutors said Torrez not only killed Snell but also murdered two young girls in his hometown of Zion when he was 16.
NEW YORK GAMBLING
22 upstate casino proposals submitted in NY
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Contenders hoping to win the right to open a casino in upstate New York include hometown business owners as well as gambling giants like Caesars, Genting Group and Foxwoods.
A state gambling panel on Thursday released the names of organizations pitching 22 different casino proposals. Wednesday was the deadline for interested parties to pay a $1 million application fee.
Four casinos are authorized in three regions: the Albany-Saratoga region, the Catskills and the Southern Tier.
The Catskills attracted the most bidders, with several competing proposals for Orange County, fifty miles north of New York City.
Voters endorsed a constitutional amendment that authorizes the casinos, which are intended to spur upstate tourism.
Complete applications are due June 30. A state panel will recommend its choices to the Gaming Commission.
FREEWAY GUNSHOTS
Reno man arrested for firing gun from vehicle
RENO, Nev. (AP) — A Reno man is behind bars after officers with the Nevada Division of Parole and Probation reported seeing him firing a gun from a car on the I-580 freeway.
The incident began around 8 p.m. Wednesday when the officers witnessed four gunshots fired from the driver's side of a four-door sedan.
They notified Department of Safety dispatchers, who contacted the Nevada Highway Patrol.
Parole and probation officers followed the vehicle to a convenience store at Kietzke Lane and Prosperity Street, where they were joined by NHP troopers and Reno police.
Authorities say the driver, Winston Nathaniel Sam, called 911 and told dispatchers he was armed. He was taken into custody without incident a few minutes later.
Sam was booked on a felony charge of discharging a weapon from a vehicle.
BEAR TRAP TAMPERING
2 Nevada women concede tampering with bear trap
(Information in the following story is from: Reno Gazette-Journal, http://www.rgj.com)
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. (AP) — A mother and daughter concede they tampered with a bear trap set up by Nevada Department of Wildlife officials last fall but claim they did so because they believed it was set illegally.
Cheryl Ann Morrison and her daughter, Season Morrison, are charged with deliberating tripping a trap set up to catch a nuisance black bear on Oct. 9 near Lake Tahoe. They are the first to be prosecuting under a Nevada law for tampering with a government bear trap
The Reno Gazette-Journal reports Justice of the Peace E. Alan Tiras delayed a ruling following a daylong hearing Wednesday in Incline Justice Court.
The women could face fines up to $1,500 if convicted of the misdemeanor offenses.
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