IN BRIEF

REGENTS' UNANIMOUS CHOICE

Richards appointed president of CSN

The Board of Regents voted unanimously Thursday to appoint Mike Richards president of the College of Southern Nevada, making him the third actual president in five years at the college.

Richards was appointed interim president in August. A search committee made up of faculty and staff unanimously recommended him for the president's job last week.

"I think we've got a real class act in Dr. Richards," Regent Steve Sisolak said.

Richards assumes the post immediately at a base salary of $210,000.

His four-year contract also includes a $12,000 annual housing allowance, an $8,000 annual car allowance and tenure in a to-be-determined department at the college.

BOY PLAYED WITH LIGHTER

Henderson fire hurts three, displaces 11

Three adults suffered burns and smoke inhalation and 11 people were displaced after a fire broke out in a Henderson home Thursday.

The fire, at 79 Atlantic Ave., near Boulder Highway and Lake Mead Parkway, was caused by a 5-year-old boy in the house who was playing with a lighter, according to the Henderson Fire Department.

Firefighters responded to the call at 11:43 a.m. and arrived to find fire and smoke billowing from a window. The blaze was knocked down within five minutes of the firefighters' arrival.

The adults who suffered injury refused to be taken to a hospital, according to the Fire Department. Damage was estimated to be at least $100,000.

The Red Cross and the Southern Nevada Burn Foundation were providing assistance in finding shelter for those displaced by the blaze, the Fire Department said.

CLUB EMPLOYEE PARALYZED

Minxx shooting suspect accuses 'Pacman' Jones

A man charged with shooting three people outside a Las Vegas strip club has denied that he was involved and accused suspended NFL cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones of ordering the shooting and framing him to avoid identifying the real shooter.

Arvin Kenti Edwards of Renton, Wash., is being held in a Washington state jail on $1 million bail pending extradition to Nevada.

He talked with WTVF-TV in Nashville, Tenn., by phone for a report that aired Wednesday.

Edwards said Jones lied to police about the Feb. 19, 2007, shooting at the Minxx club that left an employee paralyzed and two other people wounded. Edwards said that Jones paid someone for the shooting but that it wasn't him. He accused the cornerback of lying to help his plea deal as Jones tries to return to the NFL.

ARIZONA SHOOTING DEATH

Man gets 41/2 years for manslaughter

Jonathon Alldredge, 24, of Lake Havasu City, Ariz., who pleaded guilty to manslaughter, was sentenced Thursday to 41/2 years in prison.

Mohave County Superior Court Judge Bob Moon rejected pleas for probation from Alldredge and his family.

Alldredge told Moon that he shot and killed Shawn Keenan, 29, of Lake Havasu in self-defense after he was jumped and punched in an alley outside a bar in July.

He said he gained control of the situation during a struggle for his weapon and fired warning shots before shooting Keenan.

Moon said that he was impressed with good-character comments provided by his family, but that Alldredge had made poor decisions and bore responsibility for Keenan's death.

The judge said that Alldredge should not have taken his gun to the bar and that flashing cash in the business had tempted his assailant.

HENDERSON, RENO STUDENTS

Two Nevadans named Presidential Scholars

U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings has named two high school seniors in Nevada as 2008 Presidential Scholars.

Kristen Arn attends Green Valley High School in Henderson. Daniel Sexton goes to Damonte Ranch High School in Reno.

Spellings said the students are two of the 139 U.S. high school seniors who have demonstrated exceptional academic achievement, artistic excellence, leadership, citizenship and service.

Arn is a National Honors Society member and was a delegate to Girls State, where she was elected speaker of the House and district attorney in the mock government. She also is a member of the forensics team and the volleyball and varsity track teams and is the philanthropy chair of the Philosophy Club.

Sexton is school valedictorian, a National Merit finalist and captain of the Academic Olympic Team. He also is a catcher and co-captain of the baseball team, a drum major in the marching band and a gourmet cook.

The Presidential Scholars will be honored for their accomplishments June 21-24 in Washington, D.C.