Archive for December, 2007
 
Accused Convenience Store Shooter Found Incompetent
Thursday, December 27th, 2007

The man accused of shooting a convenience store clerk has been found incompetent to stand trial.

Prosecutors say Deonte Marshall shot store clerk Steve Inman, even though Inman was cooperating.

Inman died last month after being hospitalized for nearly six months.

Marshall has been sent to a mental facility for further evaluation. He could still be tried at a later date if he shows improvement.

 
Speedway Condo Project Killed After Nellis Objects
Wednesday, December 19th, 2007

Nellis Air Force base commanders have won their fight to stop the proposed development of condos at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The speedway wanted to build a 126-unit condo building on the south end of the track. The county planning commission approved the project in Nov., but the air force appealed and late Wednesday afternoon, the project was killed at a hearing that lasted more than two hours.

The lawyers for the speedway had sent a letter to commissioners saying the hearing was invalid and they refused to participate. Commissioners discounted that letter and held the meeting anyway.

Air force base officals said the building of the condos would create a safety hazard for condo residents as well as pilots. The condos would have been built 1.3 miles from the end of the runway.

The base commander said it was not a matter of if there would be an accident near the base, but when. Even Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons testified in support of killing the speedway condo project.

“You don't really want to start encroaching on the base because you put it at risk for closure, for moving to some other place. That is $4.2 billion to our economy that this base represents to Clark County, Las Vegas and the state of nevada. That is very important,” said Gov. Jim Gibbons.

 


 
More Arrests Made in Bus Stop Shooting
Tuesday, December 18th, 2007

Metro Police announced the arrest of three more suspects involved in last week's bus stop shooting. 18-year-old Dresden Williams, 20-year-old Erica Adams and a 17-year-old minor have been arrested in connection with the shooting.

Williams and the 17-year-old have been charged with six counts of attempted murder and six counts of battery with a deadly weapon. Adams is charged with accessory to commit murder and harboring a fugitive.

The first suspect, 18-year-old Nicco Tatum was arrested last week on a bus bound for Chicago. Tatum waved extradition in a Denver courtroom and now faces six counts of battery with a deadly weapon and attempted murder with a deadly weapon.

A Mojave High School student told police he “accidentally bumped” into Tatum and touched off a fight that eventually led to six people being shot at a school bus stop on Tuesday afternoon. Metro had obtained a warrant for Tatum, charging him with six counts of attempted murder and six counts of battery with a deadly weapon with substantial bodily harm.

Read the Declarations of Warrant for Nicco Tatum

In the warrant, a Mojave High School student tells police that he accidentally bumped into Tatum while walking home from the bus stop on Monday. He told police that attempted to apologize to Tatum, but instead Tatum started a physical fight with him. He said Tatum had several friends with him and he was fearful, but he was able to get away and make it home.

The student said he was concerned about his safety and asked friends and family to meet him at the bus stop on Tuesday in case Tatum returned. He told police when he exited the bus on Tuesday, he saw Tatum and several of Tatum's friends. He told police his friends were also there so he felt safe in leaving the bus.

The student said as soon as he got off the bus, Tatum and his friends moved toward him and then he heard gun shots. The student was shot in the leg as he attempted to runaway. There were also five other victims hit by gun fire.

SLIDESHOW: Bus Stop Shooting

Tatum has been described as a troublemaker and police say he has gang ties. He was a student at Mojave High School, but dropped out during his junior year. Friends say Tatum frequented the area where the shooting happened.

In the meantime, security remains beefed up at Mojave High School where a crisis-response plan has been activated since the shooting.

New Website to Help Parents Track School Violence

Metro patrol officers, school police and detectives have parked on the side of the road and kept a close eye on all of the activity and students riding on the bus route where the gunfire happened. 

“We've got extra officers at several high schools,” said Clark County School District police Sgt. Ken Young.  But he says the investigation remains focused at the northeast school were the dispute originated.

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One student told Eyewitness News that she'd be afraid to speak out. “If you snitch, your life is on the line. You're gonna be gone or something. If you snitch you face the possibility you'll be dead the next day or you'll get beat up. I would never snitch on somebody, even if I did know something,” said Kylasha Green.

Police insist that the shooting was not gang related, but say gang detectives are assisting with the investigation. They have also refused to release Tatum's mug shot and any prior criminal history.


 
New Food Bank Offers Help to Thousands
Tuesday, December 18th, 2007

Thousands of families throughout the valley struggle to put food on the table everyday.

One in 10 live in poverty here in Las Vegas and skipping meals has become an everyday routine.

And it's not just the homeless looking for something to eat – it's families who are living paycheck to paycheck that sometimes cannot meet basic needs.

The shelves at Catholic Charities may look stocked, but the food here doesn't last long. While donations are high, demand for this food is even higher.

“The real issue that we are having right now is that people that have never come to a social service agency like Catholic Charities or the Salvation Army are now coming. In many ways, some of our donors are now becoming our clients. Said Monsignor Patrick Leary with Catholic Charities.

He says in the last year the demand for food at Catholic Charities has gone up 60-percent, putting a strain on their agency and other local non-profit charities. They feed everyone from the homeless to young families.

“We're giving out more baby food than we ever have. In the last two weeks, we have given out three pallets of food. Things we normally don't stock in a food bank we now need because the younger families are coming to us,” he adds.

But the new Three Square Food Bank located at 4190 N. Pecos promises to have that baby food and other food items. This 50,000 square foot warehouse will provide food to 80 non-profit agencies. Those agencies will then put this food into the hands of those who need it most.

Punam Mathur with Three Square says thousands of kids go without food in our valley. “Four out of every 10 children who attend public school are food insecure. Those are staggering numbers of people. That means there are at least 200,000 people in our community who aren't sure where their next meal is going to come from.”

Business and gaming leaders have vowed to help, never letting the shelves in this food bank go empty and pitching in to hopefully help more and more struggling families meet their basic needs.

America's Second Harvest, which works with food banks all over the nation, has also pitched in. They provided Three Square with more than $1.8 million to fund its first year of operations.

Email your comments to Reporter Melissa Duran.


 
Nellis Air Force Base Now Powered by Solar Power Site
Monday, December 17th, 2007

Nellis Air Force Base is now being powered by the sun. A project by Sun Power Systems, with the assistance of several companies including Nevada Power and the Air Force base, built the largest solar array system in North America.

The renewable energy source uses 70,000 panels which produce enough energy to power a small city. The system is now being used as a model for future projects around the country.

“It generates power for up to 30 years with no moving parts and burning no fuels and truly is a renewable resource,” said Dan Shugar, President of the Sun Power Corporation.

The solar site took about eight months to build. It will power about 25-percent of the Air Force base.


 
Arrested Teen Makes First Court Appearance
Monday, December 17th, 2007


The teenager arrested for the shooting at a bus stop here made his first court appearance in Denver Friday. At a brief court hearing, he said he would not resist efforts to return him to Las Vegas.

Eighteen-year-old Nicco Tatum, who was on a bus on his way to Chicago, was met by police Wednesday night in Denver and arrested.

He faces six counts of battery with a deadly weapon and attempted murder with a deadly weapon.

A Mojave High School student told police he “accidentally bumped” into shooting suspect, Nicco Tatum, which touched off a fight that eventually led to six people being shot at a school bus stop on Tuesday afternoon.

Metro had obtained a warrant for Tatum, charging him with six counts of attempted murder and six counts of battery with a deadly weapon with substantial bodily harm.

Read the Declarations of Warrant for Nicco Tatum

In the warrant, a Mojave High School student tells police that he accidentally bumped into Tatum while walking home from the bus stop on Monday. He told police that attempted to apologize to Tatum, but instead Tatum started a physical fight with him. He said Tatum had several friends with him and he was fearful, but he was able to get away and make it home.

The student said he was concerned about his safety and asked friends and family to meet him at the bus stop on Tuesday in case Tatum returned. He told police when he exited the bus on Tuesday, he saw Tatum and several of Tatum's friends. He told police his friends were also there so he felt safe in leaving the bus.

The student said as soon as he got off the bus, Tatum and his friends moved toward him and then he heard gun shots. The student was shot in the leg as he attempted to runaway. There were also five other victims hit by gun fire.

SLIDESHOW: Bus Stop Shooting

Tatum has been described as a troublemaker and police say he has gang ties. He was a student at Mojave High School, but dropped out during his junior year. Friends say Tatum frequented the area where the shooting happened.

Police haven't said much about the second suspect. Metro Deputy Chief Gary Schofield says they are working hard to identify and arrest the second shooter, “The second suspect knows who he is and his best course of action would be to turn himself in because we are actively looking to identify him. And when those arrest warrants come forward, there will be a knock on his front door to take him into custody.”

In the meantime, security remains beefed up at Mojave High School where a crisis-response plan has been activated since the shooting.

Metro patrol officers, school police and detectives have parked on the side of the road and kept a close eye on all of the activity and students riding on the bus route where the gunfire happened. 

“We've got extra officers at several high schools,” said Clark County School District police Sgt. Ken Young.  But he says the investigation remains focused at the northeast school were the dispute originated.

Add your comments to LasVegasNOW Blogs

One student told Eyewitness News that she'd be afraid to speak out. “If you snitch, your life is on the line. You're gonna be gone or something. If you snitch you face the possibility you'll be dead the next day or you'll get beat up. I would never snitch on somebody, even if I did know something,” said Kylasha Green.

Police insist that the shooting was not gang related, but say gang detectives are assisting with the investigation. They have also refused to release Tatum's mug shot and any prior criminal history.

Four teens and two adults were hit during the gunfire. A 17-year-old male and 18-year-old Alex Rios are both listed in serious condition. The other four victims were released from the hospital the day of the shooting.

New Website to Help Parents Track School Violence

Sheriff Doug Gillespie, Clark County School District Superintendent Walt Rulffes and other law enforcement representatives held a joint news conference Tuesday evening. Sheriff Gillespie stressed that the schools are safe.


 
Families at Nellis AFB Get Donations from Trees for Troops
Thursday, December 6th, 2007


Families at Nellis Air Force Base can get free Christmas trees to decorate for the holidays — 700 trees were delivered to the base Wednesday as part of the Trees for Troops program.

The trees are donated by growers and retailers and FedEx ships them for free.

Last year, more than 11,000 trees were donated to 25 different military bases. This year the goal is to donate 20,000.