Woman’s Body Found Outside Sparks; No Foul Play Suspected
SPARKS — Police in Northern Nevada were investigating after a woman’s body was found on Christmas Eve on the outskirts of Sparks. Officers said they don’t believe foul play was involved.
Sgt. John Vasquez said in a statement that the unidentified woman’s body was found Tuesday afternoon in the hills northeast of the city.
Vasquez said the Washoe County Medical Examiner’s office will also investigate.
Police are asking anyone with information to call police.
New Nevada Law to Limit Indoor use of Vaping, E-Cigarettes
LAS VEGAS — A new Nevada law will expand the state’s clean-air law that already restricts smoking to also prohibit use of vaping products and electronic cigarettes in most public places and indoor places of employment.
The new law to provide protection against secondhand aerosol was enacted during the 2019 legislative session and takes effect Jan. 1, the Southern Nevada Health District said.
Places where use of vaping products and electronic cigarettes will no longer be allowed will include child care facilities, theaters, arcades, malls, restaurants and bars where minors aren’t prohibited, the health district said.
Use of tobacco products, electronic cigarettes, or vaping products will only be allowed in areas of casinos and stand-alone bars where minors are prohibited as well as retail tobacco stores, strip clubs or brothels and convention floors at tobacco-related trade shows, the district said.
Man Serving Sex Offense Sentence Dies at Nevada Prison
CARSON CITY — Officials say a Nevada prison inmate who was serving five-to-20 years for an attempted sexual assault conviction in Las Vegas has died behind bars.
The Nevada Department of Corrections said Monday that Pedro Mejia, 58, died Saturday at the hospice unit at Northern Nevada Correctional Center in Carson City.
A cause of death was not disclosed. An autopsy was scheduled, the department said.
Mejia pleaded guilty before trial and was sentenced in 2010 in Clark County District Court, records show. He also was subject to lifetime supervision as a sex offender.
Prison officials noted that Mejia was not a U.S. citizen.
Lady Gaga Hints to 1-Year Extension on Las Vegas Strip
LAS VEGAS — Lady Gaga is hinting that her Las Vegas Strip residency may extend to one more year.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that Gaga told an audience Saturday at Park Theater at Park MGM that she planned to be there “for another year.” She then flashed two fingers and appeared to say, “Two, probably.”
MGM Resorts International said the company had “no comment at this time” about Gaga’s contract or her statement from the stage.
Gaga’s contract was originally announced as two years, opening in December 2018. A third year would carry her through 2021.
The Oscar-winning singer herself mentioned a possible three-year run during her opening of “Enigma” on Dec. 28, 2018, saying, “I’m sticking around here for two years, maybe three if I’m lucky.”
Nevada Casino Winnings Fall just Short of $1B in November
LAS VEGAS — Nevada casinos brought in nearly $938 million in winnings in November, down slightly from the same month a year ago, regulators said Friday.
A steep decline in baccarat winnings contributed to an overall 3% decline in total winnings from the same month a year ago, the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s report shows. Winnings also declined in blackjack and slot machines.
Winnings increased from the same month a year ago in roulette and craps.
Driven by a major increase in football betting, Nevada sportsbooks won $31 million last month, up 14.3% from last year, according to the report.
The November haul was down slightly from October when Nevada casinos reaped more than $1 billion in winnings, the sixth time this year the state had topped the mark in a key index of fiscal health.
The nearly $11 billion in winnings the casinos have hauled in over the last 12 months was up nearly 1% from the previous year, the report shows.
Gambling tax revenue is second only to sales taxes as a percentage of the state’s annual budget. Nevada has no state income tax.
Police: 2 on Outing for Practice Shooting Accidentally Shot
SLOAN — A 27-year-old woman and a 15-year-old girl were accidentally shot and wounded by a man during a family outing to practice shooting Christmas afternoon, authorities said.
The incident occurred near Sloan about 15 miles (24.kilometers) south of the Las Vegas Strip, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said.
Lt. Peter Kisfalvi said the injuries to the woman and girl weren’t considered life-threatening and the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that it wasn’t immediately clear whether anybody would be charged in the incident.
Police did not immediately respond Thursday to a request for additional information.
Weather Service: 2019 Becomes 9th Wettest Year for Vegas
LAS VEGAS — The National Weather Service says 2019 has become the ninth wettest year on record in Las Vegas.
The three-hundredths of an inch (0.76 millimeter) of rain that fell since midnight Thursday raised the year’s total rainfall at McCarran International Airport to 6.87 inches, the weather service said.
Las Vegas’ yearly rainfall record set in 1941 is 10.72 inches (0.27 meter).
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