IN BRIEF

VICE PRESIDENTIAL VISIT

Cheney makes plans for fundraising stop

Vice President Dick Cheney is expected to visit Las Vegas to raise money for the Nevada Republican Party later this month.

Cheney is to speak at a lunchtime reception at the Summerlin home of Las Vegas Sands chairman Sheldon Adelson on Sept. 27, according to an invitation to the event, which is to be closed to the media.

Guests can pay $2,500 to get their picture taken with the vice president at 11:30 a.m. or $250, a relatively small price for a political fundraiser, to attend the noon reception.

A spokeswoman for Cheney said his plans are not yet firm, but his stop in Nevada is likely to be brief and won't include any other appearances.

SUCCESSOR TO BOGDEN

Announcement near on U.S. attorney choice

The White House is close to finalizing its choice for U.S. attorney in Nevada, Sen. John Ensign said Tuesday.

Ensign said a nominee has been picked and is undergoing a background check. He declined to identify the person, who was one of three that he suggested to the White House in June.

Ensign said he does not know when President Bush plans to submit the nomination to the Senate.

The nominee would succeed Daniel Bogden, who was one of the U.S. attorneys whose controversial firings led to the resignation of U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

MONDAY EVENING ACCIDENT

Woman killed in Vegas Drive collision

A 38-year-old Las Vegas woman died Monday night after a collision on Vegas Drive near Cimarron Road threw her into the lap of her passenger, Las Vegas police said.

Police said Nicole Bombardier was traveling east in a 2002 Ford Mustang about 7:45 p.m. when Las Vegas resident Danny Winder, 52, backed into her with a 2008 Mercedes Benz as he was pulling out of a driveway.

The collision caused Bombardier's car to spin into oncoming traffic in the westbound lane, police said.

A 2005 Nissan Pathfinder driven by 40-year-old Las Vegas resident Tammy Mathews then collided with the Ford, police said. The impact threw Bombardier from her seat and into the lap of her passenger, 19-year-old Chris Perez, police said.

Bombardier was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. Mathews and her 40-year-old passenger, Philip Mathews, sustained moderate injuries and were taken to University Medical Center.

Winder received minor injuries and was treated at the scene.