Oct 14, 2012

Exotic Bird Decapitated at Las Vegas Casino; Law Students Charged

By Alyssa Newcomb

                                                          (Image Credit: Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Dept.)

Two University of California-Berkeley students are accused of decapitating an exotic 14-year-old bird at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino’s wildlife habitat in Las Vegas.

Eric Cuellar and Justin Teixeira, both 24, were captured on surveillance video Friday morning chasing the helmeted guinea fowl into some trees and then emerging carrying its severed body, according to a statement from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

The two men, who said they are law students at the school, then laughed about the killing and threw the body of the bird, witnesses told police.

They were booked into the Clark County Detention Center and face felony charges of conspiracy and the willful and malicious torture or killing of wildlife.

The Flamingo’s Wildlife Habitat is home to hundreds of animals, including swans, ducks, turtles and of course, flamingos.

It was not clear whether Cuellar and Teixeira had hired an attorney.


http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/10/exotic-bird-decapitated-at-las-vegas-casino-law-students-charged/

Caesars: a pattern of abuse

Nevada fines Caesars for 'pattern' of underage gambling

Caesars Entertainment Corp. agreed to pay the state of Nevada a $100,000 fine to settle underage gambling charges. (Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press) By John M. Glionna July 27, 2012, 12:43 p.m. LAS VEGAS – This tourist city has for years prided itself as a destination for the entire family – from Daddy and Mommy on down to little Junior. But Caesars seems to have taken the concept a bit too far. It was busted this week for what many might consider the unthinkable: kids on the casino floor – gasp! – placing bets.   This week, the Caesars Entertainment Corp. agreed to pay the state of Nevada a $100,000 fine to settle underage gambling charges, and the state’s Gaming Control Board warns that the outfit may face a stiffer penalty if any hanky-panky poker or slot machine incidents happen again.   “This is not an isolated incident, but a pattern of abuse,” Nevada Gaming Commissioner Randolph Townsend said Thursday as the regulatory panel voted to accept the settlement with Caesars over multiple charges of gambling and alcohol consumption by underage customers at several of the company's resorts on the Strip between 2010 and May of this year.     He warned that the casino was getting off easy. This time. Board members say a paltry $100,000 is certainly not enough to send a message to the fantastically wealthy industry. But the settlement, negotiated by Nevada Deputy Atty. Gen. John Michela, was based on history and precedent.   "If it happens again, I want a seven-figure settlement or else we will litigate it," Townsend said. "As we enter the Internet gaming world, this becomes a significant issue."   It is against the law for anyone under the age of 21 to partake in any kind of gaming in Las Vegas. In fact, anyone under that age is forbidden from loitering on the casino floor.   Caesars Entertainment spokesman Gary Thompson told reporters that the company "has been recognized as a leader in responsible gaming" and is "committed to its programs, including Project 21, which addresses underage gambling." [When Harrah's, now Caesars, determined that 90% of their profits originated from 10% of their patrons, they targeted, comped and pursued them. That's Gambling Addiction. Nothing 'RESPONSIBLE' HERE.] Under terms of the July 9 settlement, Caesars agreed to pay the $100,000 fine and admitted to all violations in the complaint. The company has 60 days to report how it has addressed the issues.   Investigators say employees of Caesars Palace, Harrah's Las Vegas, Rio and Flamingo allowed customers between the ages of 17 and 20 to play table games at the properties even though dealers were presented identification showing gamblers were under the age of 21. In May, a dealer at Caesar's Palace reportedly misread the passport of a 19-year-old and allowed him to play blackjack.   Also in May, Bobbi Kristina Brown, the 19-year-old daughter of the late Whitney Houston, was caught on camera gambling in Las Vegas – playing slots with her 22-year-old boyfriend, Nick Gordon.   In 2007, an underage Las Vegas man tried to recoup his $600 loss at the Venetian by telling hotel officials he wasn't old enough to gamble legally. He was later prosecuted on misdemeanor charges. http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-nevada-gaming-board-kiddie-gamblers-vegas-20120727,0,4816718.story

Las Vegas: 3rd Slaying in 2 weeks

Fatal Vegas casino punch was self-defense, claims wife of accused
By Barry Leibowitz

(CBS/AP) LAS VEGAS - The wife of Florida high school football coach Benjamin Hawkins, who's being held on a murder charge, says Hawkins was defending himself when he threw a single punch that authorities say killed a man in a casino on the Las Vegas Strip.


"It just looked like he wouldn't leave my husband alone," Leticia Hawkins, 35, a banker from Gainesville, Fla., told The Associated Press. "My husband was defending himself."


Benjamin Hawkins pleaded not guilty Friday during a brief appearance before a Las Vegas judge, who scheduled a Tuesday bail hearing in the death of 46-year-old John Massie, of Roy, Utah.


Defense attorney Jack Buchanan told AP he wanted to review security videotapes that police say clearly show the confrontation between Hawkins and Massey after the two exited a men's restroom at O'Sheas Las Vegas Casino. The video shows the single punch that felled Massie.


Benjamin Hawkins, who is black, told police that Massie, who's white, made a comment about a "black man in a yellow shirt" in the restroom. He also said he told Massie to shut up before the two men squared off in a food court area of the hard-partying, Irish-themed casino that lures pedestrian traffic on a block that includes the Harrah's, Flamingo and Caesars Palace resorts.


Police say Hawkins told them he interpreted Massie's actions as aggressive, and he feared that if he turned his back on Massie, he'd be attacked from behind. Benjamin Hawkins whirled and punched Massie once in the jaw, according to a police report.


The Clark County coroner determined Massie died of a head injury from the punch and a fall to the floor. The death was classified as a homicide.


Benjamin Hawkins is a teacher and assistant football coach at Bradford County High School in Starke, Fla.


Jeremy Brown, a friend who was visiting Las Vegas with the Hawkinses, said he didn't think racial bias played a role in Hawkins' mind during the confrontation.


"Ben did not hit the other person just because he was white," Brown said. "Race may have been what motivated the other guy."


The slaying was the third on the Vegas Strip in less than two weeks. Police say the deaths - including the fatal stabbings of a 21-year-old man Monday on a pedestrian walkway between casinos, and of another 21-year-old Las Vegas man in a pre-dawn confrontation June 25 - are not related, and arrests have been made in each case.