IN BRIEF

BOMB THREAT

Suspect sought in robbery that prompted evacuation

A man who used a bomb threat to rob a downtown bank Wednesday morning fled with an "undisclosed" amount of money, authorities said.

The suspect, described as a black man in his 30s, 6 feet 1 inches tall and 180 pounds, set off a bomb scare that prompted a building evacuation and snarled nearby traffic for more than an hour.

Joseph Dickey, a special agent with the FBI's Las Vegas field office, said the robbery happened shortly after 9 a.m. at Nevada State Bank, 230 Las Vegas Blvd. South, near Bridger Avenue.

Dickey said the suspect approached the teller holding a package and said there was an explosive device inside. Dickey said the suspect demanded money and then fled.

The bank was evacuated. As of Wednesday afternoon, the suspect had not been arrested.

Dickey said an all-hazards task force that handles terrorist events and chemical and explosive attacks arrived and took the package behind the bank. Task force members found the package contained a cigar box with batteries and wires.

Las Vegas police spokesman Bill Cassell said streets near the crime scene were closed until 11 a.m.

The suspect was last seen wearing a dark blue or black jacket with the University of Notre Dame logo on the front and the words "Notre Dame" on the back.

Anyone with information about the suspect or the robbery is urged to call the FBI at 385-1281.

FAMILY COURT POST

Panel recommends two for Clark County judgeship

The Nevada Commission on Judicial Selection has forwarded the names of the only two applicants for a vacancy in Clark County Family Court to the governor to make an appointment.

Former District Judge Robert Teuton, 56, and Las Vegas lawyer Michele Mercer, 47, are the only people who applied for the seat.

Because only two applications were received, the panel Wednesday voted to forgo candidate interviews and instead submit the names directly to Gov. Jim Gibbons.

Nevada Supreme Court Chief Justice James Hardesty said both applicants had been interviewed by the commission when the judgeship first became vacant nearly a year ago.

Teuton was appointed last year to fill the post, but was removed in November because his temporary appointment had expired months earlier.

IDAHO SUPREME COURT

U.S. grandparents lose international custody battle

The Idaho Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that two orphaned children will remain with their grandmother in Argentina, not with family members in California who also wanted custody.

The ruling means that Alden and Aliana Heiss will stay with Violeta Conti in Ushuaia.

The children's parents, Karl Heiss and Marisa Bauducco-Heiss, were killed in a car crash near Seattle last year. Aliana, who was 10 at the time of the crash, sustained severe brain damage in the crash. And Alden, who was 6, suffered whiplash but has fully recovered.

The parents had handwritten wills granting custody to Conti, but paternal grandparents Fred and Anna Belle Heiss, of Malibu, Calif., sought custody.

The 14-page ruling was unanimous.