A luxury casino on the Las Vegas Strip says the NBA should not have been included in a $50,000 lawsuit filed this month for an unpaid convention bill from 2007 All-Star Week.

Jennifer Dunne of the Wynn Las Vegas says the lawsuit seeking payment from the NBA and a player's charity should have only been filed against Alonzo Mourning Charities, Inc., not against NBA Entertainment and NBA Properties.

Dunne said an “administrative error” led to the mistake, and it would be promptly corrected Monday morning. The casino alleges in the lawsuit filed June 16 in Clark County District Court that the charity used convention and meeting space for a fundraiser during the All-Star Week. According to a fan Web site for the Miami Heat player and an online promotional video, a charity billiards tournament and silent auction were held at Wynn Las Vegas on Feb. 15, 2007.

Alonzo Mourning Charities did not immediately respond to a phone call seeking comment from The Associated Press late Sunday.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Four teenage girls are recovering Friday, after the car they were in crashed through a parking garage and fell off the second story of the structure. It happened Thursday at this parking garage at the Stratosphere Hotel Casino.

Police say a 17-year-old girl, who was not properly licensed to drive a vehicle, drove her car through the barrier and plunged 25 feet to the ground.

Three other teens were also in the car but luckily none were seriously hurt.

“I thought that maybe she was dead, or I don't know, something terrible,” said Laura Carranza, a sister of a passenger.

“They told us that it was a miracle that they were alive,” said Carolina Hernandez, a sister of another passenger.

The driver's parents may be ticketed for allowing their daughter to break the law by leaving their car to her. The girls were taken to the hospital but three have already been released.

O.J. Simpson cast himself as a victim of an ambitious Nevada prosecutor who the former NFL star, actor and celebrity criminal defendant blamed for pressing a kidnapping and armed robbery case that he says even the alleged victims don't want to pursue.

“If I was anybody else, I wouldn't be going to court,” Simpson told a reporter for Fargo, N.D., radio station KFGO who interviewed him late Tuesday at a cigar bar near where Simpson was vacationing in northwest Minnesota.

“How many trials have you ever heard of where both of the victims say they don't want this guy to go to jail, they don't want to go to court, and you still go to court?” Simpson asked. “It's
only me.

“But unfortunately for me,” Simpson added, “I got like a bull's eye on my front, dollar sign on my back, you get involved with people who want to be governor and stuff.”

Clark County District Attorney David Roger declined comment on the apparent reference to his political aspirations.

Simpson's lawyer, Yale Galanter, said Thursday that Simpson was venting his frustration about facing trial Sept. 8 in Las Vegas on charges carrying the possibility of prison time.

“I think O.J.'s comments show how totally frustrated he is over this incident that involves family heirlooms that were stolen from him by some very nefarious characters,” Galanter said.

Galanter also downplayed Simpson's comments about the prosecutor, saying that he had the “utmost respect” for Roger and another prosecutor in the case, Chris Owens.

“I have no reason to believe their motives in this case have been anything less than ethical and honorable,” Galanter said.

Simpson and two co-defendants, Ehrlich and Clarence “C.J.” Stewart, have pleaded not guilty to kidnapping, armed robbery and assault with a deadly weapon charges stemming from allegations they robbed two sports memorabilia dealers in a Las Vegas casino hotel room last September. Simpson has denied any guns were involved.

A kidnapping conviction carries the possibility of life in prison with the possibility of parole. An armed robbery conviction would mean mandatory prison time.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

A Las Vegas judge reviewed charging documents and scheduled a Friday court date for a man to face allegations he robbed and beat NFL player Javon Walker, a court officer said.

Arfat Fadel's scheduled appearance before Justice of the Peace Tony Abbatangelo will be his second in a week in a Las Vegas court. Fadel did not have to attend court Thursday for Abbatangelo to review his paperwork.

The 30-year-old Fadel told another judge Wednesday that police pressured his girlfriend to press separate domestic violence charges against him before he was arrested in the Walker case.

That judge refused Fadel's request to reduce his $13,000 bail in that case and set a preliminary hearing for July 9 on felony kidnapping, coercion and misdemeanor domestic violence battery charges. Fadel remains held at the Clark County jail in Las Vegas.

Police say Fadel faces multiple felonies including kidnapping, robbery, battery and conspiracy in the June 16 robbery and beating that left the 29-year-old Walker unconscious on a side street off the Las Vegas Strip.

The Oakland Raiders wide receiver told police he lost about $3,000 in cash and $100,000 worth of jewelry in the robbery. He was hospitalized for what police said were facial injuries and a
concussion.

Police say Walker spent several hours club-hopping late June 15 and early June 16 before “willingly” getting into Fadel's black Range Rover with Fadel and another alleged assailant.

Police say Walker said he didn't know the men. Investigators are still searching for the other suspect.
  
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

State leaders are planning to meet for a special session on Friday. But Wednesday, we got a preview of what we can expect in the future. UNLV released its midyear economic outlook for southern Nevada and things are a lot tougher than originally expected.

At the beginning of this year, experts said the economic outlook for southern Nevada wasn't the best, but felt like residents would be able to muddle through. Now with skyrocketing gas prices, the mood has shifted from bad to worse.

UNLV's Center for Business and Economic Research says two areas in particular are hurting our economy more than expected. First, is problems with credit and finance — it's harder for businesses and residents to get approved for loans. Second, no one expected gas prices to go up as high as they have.

The cost of food has also gone up. Businesses are scaling back and people are losing their jobs.

Though he can't give a guarantee, Economics Professor Keith Schwer believes there is some relief in sight, “We do expect that prices will not remain at these high levels once we get past the summer months, and they would be very hard to sustain at this level over the long run.”

Housing is still not doing well in southern Nevada. Home prices continue to drop and sales are still off. But experts believe that once those houses reach a level of affordability, the market will start to pick back up.

Oil prices are also hurting our tourism industry. Airlines have to cut back, which in turn hurts how many visitors come to Las Vegas.

The good news is that experts don't anticipate it will take any longer to see some improvement. They're still saying in late 2009, things should get better as thousands of hotels rooms are expected to open up late in the year. That'll bring hundreds of jobs.

Experts say in the past, more openings has created more demand. It gives visitors new reasons to come to Las Vegas.

Email your comments to Reporter Melissa Duran

Las Vegas construction deaths will be the focus of a U.S. House of Representatives meeting going on right now, questioning whether safety is really a top priority.

As for who is in the hot seat — not necessarily our city, but the federal agency that's supposed to protect construction workers. Twelve people have died on Strip sites in the last 19 months — six at Project CityCenter alone. And that's why OSHA is in the hot seat.

The Nevada Occupational Safety and Health Administration is sent in to investigate any accident or death that occurs on these sites. Currently on Capitol Hill, state and federal OSHA representatives are taking the stand to defend their regulations.

But the local unions say more needs to be done.

“I think federal OSHA has got a disconnect to state OSHA, and I'll say Nevada State OSHA. Nevada State OSHA under funded, under budgeted, undermanned – they need more bodies. I also think at the federal level under this administration, there's a lot of things that are being overlooked, violations that are not being followed through with and fines not being followed through with,” said Steve Ross, Building Trades spokesman.

After the most recent death at CityCenter earlier this month, workers walked off the job site over what they said were unsafe working conditions. The construction unions sometimes do their own investigations into accidents that happen on job sites.

But many of the twelve death investigations under OSHA are still ongoing.

Email your comments to Reporter Calvert Collins.

The Centers For Disease Control are investigating the case of a dog with Anthrax found here in the valley.

Metro's Department of Homeland Security and the Southern Nevada Health District were called out to the Animal Emergency Clinic near Patrick and Pecos because a dog may have been exposed to Anthrax. A manager at the animal hospital said that there was never a danger to the public because this type of Anthrax is not the airborne kind of Anthrax, which is even more dangerous.

Maggie Howes treated the dog at about 11:30 p.m. Sunday inside the animal clinic. She says the dog was bloated, and they took a sample of fluid from inside the dog's belly. After some tests, the sample appeared to be infected with anthrax. That's when they called investigators.

“At that point, we were able to isolate a bacteria that looks similar to Anthrax. We don't know if that's what it was, there are several other bacterium that look exactly the same, so at this point we don't have any confirmation from the CDC,” said Howes.

She says the dog lived with his owner on a large lot near the edge of the city and had a history of eating anything it could find. Hospital staff and the dog's owner were interviewed to make sure none of them were exposed. But even if they were, this kind of Anthrax exposure is treatable, if it was indeed Anthrax. That still has yet to be determined.

However, the dog did die, and they are preparing to cremate it. Once again, hospital staff said there was no public danger. It was not the weaponized airborne form of Anthrax, it was a bacteria.

While it is unknown how the dog came in contact with the Anthrax, it is pretty common in the soil out here in the southwest. So the dog eats something off the ground, it has dirt on it – the dog then ingests the Anthrax.

An elevator slipped a few floors at Paris Las Vegas after a cable snapped. Four people were trapped inside.

Clark County Fire Department says a 60-year-old woman was complaining of minor back pain. Her injuries were treated at the scene.

The scene has been cleared up and everything is back to normal.

As the heat goes up this year, the cost of hotel rooms in Las Vegas is falling. In an effort to attract more guests, nearly all the mega-casino companies are offering deals.

With US Airways announcing they're cutting half of their flights to Las Vegas and gas prices keeping some southern California tourists away, dropping prices is meant to turn the falling visitor numbers around. Tourists coming to Las Vegas have seen a shift as the national economy slows.

“Definitely looking for deals anywhere I can find them. Anytime I can save a buck,” said tourist Joe Canna.

Corinne Stokowski says the deals helped make the decision on where to vacation. The choice was down to the Caribbean and Las Vegas. A package from Harrah's for airfare and four nights cost less than any other vacation.

“From last year — I came last year in April. It's probably about $200 dollars cheaper,” she said.

Those deals seem become sweeter as Las Vegas hits the summer slow down mixed with a sluggish economy. MGM Grand is offering spa treatment discounts, reduced room rates and a $35 dining credit with a booking at the hotel.

But it's the Venetian that created the most buzz. Anyone signed up for their e-mail offers received a surprise. The Venetian set their room rates at the forecasted temperature, anywhere from $104 a night to $115 a night later in the summer.

Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Senior Vice President of Marketing Terry Jicinsky says that the casinos are better than anyone at drumming up business, “They understand that providing value packages and incentives go a long way in enticing visitors to Las Vegas.”

Even Station Casinos opened a new market with deals. $200 will get you two nights at any of their properties — even the new Red Rock Casino. They threw in a gas card, food gift certificate, bowling, movie tickets and gaming bonuses.

Spokeswoman Lori Nelson says they received 2,000 new reservations from locals wanting to vacation here, “Those reservations are new guests who never would have stayed at the hotel side of what we do.”

Every company is trying to keep money flowing and special offers may be the solution. The special deals go from Memorial Day to Labor Day only. A little research may save a lot of money, and the casino's hope their bottom line as well.

Email your comments to Reporter Edward Lawrence

MGM Mirage Inc. has announced plans for a joint venture on a non-gambling hotel in mainland China. The Las Vegas-based casino company says its hospitality arm, MGM Mirage Hospitality, plans to provide development and management services for the plaza project in Tianjin, China.

The mixed project would include two towers, with a luxury hotel to be named MGM Grand Tianjin, condominiums and spa, office and restaurant facilities.

Analyst Bill Lerner of Deutsche Bank said in a note to investors that the deal could generate about $200 million in yearly cash flow for MGM Mirage.

The Chinese partner in the deal is Diaoyutai State Guesthouse. Lerner says the deal could be one of many more in which MGM Mirage lends its brand and hotel expertise. He says the company's hospitality unit could eventually be spun off to a separate public company.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)