THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2003
NATION
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 7A
Conn. fire kills 10 in nursing home
The Associated Press
HARTFORD, Conn. — A suspicious fire ripped through a nursing home before daybreak yesterday, killing 10 people and forcing 100 residents, some of them bedridden, elderly and confused, into the freezing cold. Police said they wanted to question a resident about the blaze.
The fire at the Greenwood Health Center also injured 23 people, seven critically. Many of the injured were already chronically ill.
"It's certainly the worst fire we've had in the city of Hartford for several decades," Fire Chief Charles Teale said.
Investigators have detained a 23-year-old resident, Lt. Michael Manzi said. Police Chief Bruce Marquis said the resident had not yet been questioned.
"We are unable to interview that individual right now because that person is under the care of
medical professionals and thus deemed not stable," Marquis said. He said the cause of the fire had not been determined.
Flames and thick smoke forced residents out of the single-story brick building and into the darkness. The home cares for coma patients, psychiatric patients and elderly or retarded people, and rescues had to struggle to take many of them out on gurneys and in wheelchairs.
The fire broke out at 2:40 a.m. and damaged two sections of the building. In all, 100 of the 148 patients were evacuated. Authorities later found a place for them in another part of the home.
More than 80 residents remained at the center yesterday afternoon; about 50 were transferred to other facilities.
Fire Marshal William Abbott said the home was up to code, and extinguishers were present. There was no sprinkler system, but none was required.
Nevada proposes brothel sin tax
The Associated Press
PAHRUMP, Nev. — The manager of one of Nevada's finest brothels proudly walks the 297 acres that surround The Resort at Sheri's Ranch, pointing to the $7 million expansion that opened last year. She glows when talking about the sports bar, the themed bungalows, the Jacuzzi rooms.
So good that several influential Nevada lawmakers said the industry should do more than fulfill sexual fantasies. With the state facing a deficit of as much as $704 million, some legislators want to tax the fees of Nevada prostitutes in what could be the ultimate sin tax.
"Business is good," Laraine Harper said.
"Everybody should pay," said Assemblywoman Shella Leslie, a Reno Democrat. "It should be taxed just like any other entertainment."
Brothels and hookers in Nevada — the only state with legal prostitution — are subject to
federal income tax on their overall earnings and have to pay various county taxes and fees. But Nevada has no state income tax.
Some say a state tax on sex acts would further legitimize an industry that many people prefer to keep at arm's length. A state tax could also hurt the small rural counties that depend on revenue from local brothel taxes. And some fear it could drive legal prostitutes underground.
The brothel owners are not particularly enthusiastic, either.
"What are the girls going to do?" asked Geoff Arnold, president of the Nevada Brothel Association. "Have a calculator in the room? The girls aren't the best at math."
They may have to learn.
Gov. Kenny Guinn has proposed a 7.3 percent tax on entertainment and admissions that is expected to generate $82.5 million in its first year. His proposal lists movies, professional sporting events, adult cabarets, strip clubs, art galleries and cabaret contests,
among, others, as subject to the tax.
Brothels are not listed in the blue ribbon commission's 1,100-page report on which Guinn based his proposal — but they also are not listed among the exempted businesses, which include massage, yoga and golf.
There are 28 licensed brothels operating in 10 of Nevada's 17 counties. They generate tens of millions in profits, though precise numbers are guarded as house secrets. The state Health Division estimates 365,000 sex acts are performed in Nevada's brothels annually, or 1,000 a day.
The brothels employed hundreds of women and paid more than $500,000 to counties in license fees, room taxes and other levies last year. The counties use the money for a variety of purposes: in Nye County, it finances a $120,000-a-year ambulance service.
"If it fits one of them out business, it would hurt the county."
Some counties fear a state tax would pinch off that revenue.
said Storey County Commissioner Greg Hess. "For some of these rural counties the brothels are a major source of income."
Prostitutes are considered independent contractors, with most splitting their fees with the brothels. Depending on what lawmakers decide, the prostitutes themselves could be responsible for paying some or all of the 7.3 percent tax.
At Sheri's, which is about an hour west of Las Vegas in the dusty town of Pahrump, prices can range from $200 to $50,000. The brothel handled more than 10,000 customers last year; business is so good Sheri's intends to build a $42 million PGA golf course.
"If they add another 7 percent, that puts us in the 40 percent tax range," said 42-year-old Destyny, a former prostitute at Sheri's who is now employed at Bella's Men's Club in Wells. "After the house gets our 50 percent, the IRS wants 40 percent. That's not fair. They get enough of our money."
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