spotlight shifts to las vegas... ahead of tomorrow's democratic caucus. (( ... and hillary clinton .. applause)) we take you live to a rally for bernie sanders... and hear from hillary clinton about why her plan for making college more affordable... is more sustainable than sanders. ((denise valdez)) helping firefighters raise money for burn victims. sounds like a good cause... but don't let your generous side get the best of you. michelle mortensen is on your side with the latest scam gaining traction in the valley. ((dave courvoisier)) > the runnin' rebels gear up for the big in- state rivalry game. but they're having to do it without a full roster... chris maathuis will look into how they're hoping to work around that, in their match-up with the wolfpack./// < news music voice over: "now, nevada's first choice for news. this is 8 news now at 6." > ((dave courvoisier)) > thanks for joining us tonight... i'm dave courvoisier. ((denise valdez)) and i'm

paula has the night off. the nevada democratic caucuses are now less than 24 hours away... and the political world is focused on the silver state tonight. ((dave courvoisier)) national media outlets are fanned out across the valley... and so are we.. keeping up with both democratic presidential candidates. ((denise valdez)) lets first check in with patrick walker... who has been covering the bernie sanders campaign all week. he's live in henderson at a rally just getting underway. ((patrick walker)) bernie sanders has been criss- crossing the state today... and he's on his way back from sparks this evening he's expected to be here at the henderson amphitheater in the next hour or so. sanders' campaign announced today he received the endorsement of the clark county black caucus. the group says african americans clark county's population. in a race as tight as this... maker. and while several prominant latino dreamers endorsed hillary clinton recently... bernie has been getting support

i spoke with one who has been driving back- and-forth from the los angeles area for the past two months... to canvass for bernie here on the weekends. ((ely diaz/dreamer supporting bernie sanders: "latinos not only care about immigration and minimum wage, no, we also care about everything else, you know, we don't need to be going into wars, we do want our kids to get a great education.")) ((patrick walker)) overall... about a third of voters in the 2012 general election in nevada were minorities. that's a number that both camps are expecting to be higher for the caucus. ((patrick walker)) here's how it will all go down tomorrow. doors open at 11 a-m... and caucusing begins at noon. it'll go on for four hours... but we're expecting early results from the smaller locations by around 2. reporting live... i'm patrick walker... 8 news now./// ((denise valdez)) > hillary clinton has been busy today as well... in fact right about now she's sitting down with patrick's "politics now" co-host steve sebelius... for a one on one interview. we'll see more from that tonight at eleven. but first...

she touched on everything from immigration to education... and made sure to differentiate herself from bernie sanders... after he's campaigned for free college tuition: (( hillary clinton: i'm not offering free to everybody because i do not think you your families should pay to send donald trump's kids to college. i want to pay to send you to college in the sense that i would subsidize families who have financial challenges but if you make college free for everybody you're just going to drive the cost up and you'll never be able to get those costs under control. )) /// ((denise valdez)) > we also caught up with clinton during a stop at the college of southern nevada for a roundtable with working mothers. a crowd of mostly women and college students were there to hear who talk about raising wages and improving life. she joined a group of local women who struggle to strike a balance between work and family. the focus of the talk was real

challenges./// ((dave courvoisier)) > even though nevadans have been caucusing since 2008, many folks remain unfamiliar with the process. 8 news now anchor paul joncich is here to explain how it works. ((paul joncich)) some people are intimidated because it's different than simply going into a voting booth and casting your vote. it's more of a public process. but it's not complicated....s o don't worry, you don't have to give a speech or suddenly become an expert in politics to caucus. ((paul joncich)) tomorrow, democrats will meet at their local caucus sites, typically schools, community centers and churches. if you're a democrat and you're not registered, don't worry, you can sign up when you get there. some inside, will give speeches to try and persuade those who are undecided. when you choose a canidate, you'll break up into groups. ((nat from iowa story)) our sister station in iowa used toy soldiers to demonstrate the caucus process. ((short sot from story?)) it's pretty simple really, supporters in each group will then be counted. and the results will be the first step in determining delegates to the national

many who've particiapted in a caucus say they walk away feeling like they were part of something larger. ((13:50:59 dr. david damore/unlv political science: "but what is different is that you're doing this publically, as opposed to in a voting booth, you can be persuaded as generally there's a limit to how far out from the voting booth they can talk to you....so it's very different enviornment and a bigger time committment as well."/// ((paul joncich)) caucus sites open at 11 tomorrow, you need to be in line by noon at the latest. it should wrap up by early afternoon. in 2008 118- thousand nevada democrats came out to caucus. you can find your caucus site by simply typing in your address on your party's website. you can get there....through our website, las vegas now.com/// ((dave courvoisier)) remember... we're your local election headquarters. tomorrow we have you covered for the latest caucus results... starting at 4pm... followed by 8 news now at 5 and 6:00... then a live edition of politics now at 7.

again on tuesday for the republican caucus. stay up to date on air an online at las vegas now dot com./// ((denise valdez)) > two people are behind bars... in two separate child abuse cases in north las vegas. cynthia lavender is accused of murder. police say she was watching a good friend's five month old boy....and admitted to throwing the baby and later dropping the baby...the infant did not survive. alejandra robles is accused of child abuse and neglect. police say she was working at an unlicensed daycare and admitted to throwing a seven month old child who will have injuries for the rest of his life. north las vegas police reminded parents to call authorities if you see anything that is cause for concern./// ((dave courvoisier)) > a deadly shooting outside the cosmopolitan. the investigation underway... and where the whole thing started. plus... it's going to be a perfect weekend for caucusing... tedd? tedd florendo you got that right. more 70's and this time less wind. but there are some slight changes in store for sunday. we'll break down your entire weekend coming up in a few minutes.

news music > for her "experience, leadership, tenacity," the las vegas sun endorses hillary clinton. just like planned parenthood action fund endorses clinton for her fortitude keeping government out of women's personal healthcare decisions. and the league of conservation voters action fund... for her bold plan to attack climate change. or the human rights campaign... because hillary believes only love should decide which two people can marry. not just a progressive. a progressive who gets results. i'm hillary clinton,

((denise valdez)) > two people are dead and one person is injured after a shooting on the strip early this morning. sharie johnson is live with details of the shooting and whether crime on the strip is down. ((sharie johnson)) first you have to consider... strip crime is extremely broad... from pimps and prostitutes official say prey on tourists... to high profile shootings we've seen... ...just like the one before 2am this morning... several people were inovlved in a fight inside the parking garage of the miracle mile shops. after security broke up the fight... the people involved left in 2 separate cars. minutes later a shooting at harmon and aldebaran avenue.. that's right by the panorama

when police arrived they found a woman shot... then they were notified another woman and man drove to the valet at cosmopolitan with gun shot wounds. both women died and the man is recovering at the hospital. . and this is similar to several big incident we've seen on the strip. so is safety improving? we asked the former henderson police chief who also used to work for metro: ((tommy burns, police & security consultant i think the crime is down but we tend to get some highly publicized events like the one that occured last night )) ((sharie johnson)) burns says some clubs on the strip spend up to a million dollars a year in overtime to have metro officers on duty. ( (sharie johnson)) metro is asking for your help finding a dark gray 2015 toyota camry driven by a black male in his

reporting live, sharie johnson, 8newsnow./// ((dave courvoisier)) > a corruption case spanning southern nevada. what the bureau of reclamation had to say about the investigation underway... that led to multiple raids by the f-b-i yesterday./// <

bilbray: a woman's right to control her own healthcare is something that's very important to me. the very first conversation that i had with bernie sanders was on this issue. bernie has spent his entire career defending a woman's right to choose. i'm the mother of two daughters. this is critical to me. i would not be standing behind bernie sanders if he didn't have a 100% record on a woman's right to make decisions about her own body. this is a deal-breaker, and he is a champion for a woman's right to choose. sanders: i'm bernie sanders,

courvoisier and paula francis. the news of southern nevada is now." > ((dave courvoisier)) > 8 news now continues to investigate a series of f-b-i raids conducted in the valley, thursday. the public corruption investigation centers around rick leavitt... a financial manager for the bureau of reclamation. reporter brittany edney has more

we've tried to contact rick leavitt several times over the past 2 days but have yet to spot the long time accountant. the bureau of reclamation confirms there is an investigation. rose davis, the public affairs officers says quote: "as far as the events reported yesterday, the f-b-i is leading the investigation and reclamation's lower colorado region is cooperating fully. so what exactly is going on? well, we know the bureau manages the sale of electricity generated by the hoover dam. the contract that allows the sale of power will expire next year so an audit committee was created to make sure proper accounting procedures are being followed. leavitt is one of the members of the committee... he is also listed as the chairman of an audit commitee for vestin mortgage. that company happens to be located in the same building as l-l bradford and company... which is the accounting firm that was awared the contract to audit the dam. law enforcement agencies executed search warrants at leavitt's home in henderson... where our cameras saw authrorities removing boxes containing unknown items. the other locations include his

city... plus l-l bradford.... where the investigation appears to be focused. and as of today...the nevada state board of accountancy registry lists leavitt's status as "active" ... which indicicates that his licence is current and in good standing. ((dave courvoisier)) the f-b-i says so far, no arrests have been made, and none are immediately expected./// ((denise valdez)) > why has a huge project on the strip been so slow getting off the ground? that's a question we're working to get some answers on. tonight at eleven... we take a closer look at resorts world las vegas. the 87 acre site that was once boyd gaming's echelon project -- it was purchased by the genting group in 2013. there are elaborate plans for a 3- thousand room asian themed resort. it promised 30- thousand construction jobs and a 2018 opening, but so far the only noticable work is being performed by a handful of crews on the parking garage. that's what paul joncich is

tonight at eleven./// ((weather toss)) ((hi tedd, how come tornadoes happen in the midwest but not tornadoes happen in the midwest but not here in las vegas, nevada? )) <

nice clear skies again with calmer winds today. still some locals seeing a southwesterly breezy this afternoon, but not as strong as yesterday. this evening turns nice with even calmer winds and cool conditions but not cold as we head through the evening. we're also we're also warmer than we were yesterday at this time. ............................... ............... afternoon temps jumped back into the 70's late day. compare that to what we had yesterday with all the clouds and cooler 60's for the high. we didn't even reach 70 for many neighborhoods yesterday. today the 70's returned and it looks like they'll stay a while. ............................... ..............

back with some 80's in a few locals. warmest spots few locals. warmest spots obviously were in the laughlin and death valley late day, with cooler to chilly temps still sticking around in the central great basin. ............................... ......... weekend forecast lookds good. plenty of sun with temps in the mid 70's from saturday through monday. expect some breezes on sunday and early week but otherwise and above average weekend temperature wise. ............................... ........... u.s. temps show the warmth now down to the southern plains. dallas at 76 by afternoon. those areas there have to worry about high fire dangers. cold weather sticking around to the east with new york a couple of digits about the freezing mark this afternoon and cold conditions in boston. ............................... ............. dry and mainly clear right now with high thing clouds and that's about it. stormy conditions will ride about the high we'll have and be deflected tothe pacific northwest again. they have already had the wettest winter on record. ............................... ................ here's your travelers forecast. 72 in los angeles and sunny. same goes for san francisco at 62. phoenix plenty of sun at 83 and warmerst here. 67 for san diego tomorrow afternoon. ............................... ............ tonight staying chilly by morning under mostly clear skies and light winds for now. tomorrow expect highs back in the 70's again and warmer. light breezes for your saturday

sunshine returning. we're still above average again for temps since we're typically around 64 for this time of year. ......................................tended forecast shows plenty d 70's this coming week with another drweatherttern.e comfortable 70 will bearound with minor changes late week. e weend loo nice withybe some breezy late weekendrly week, but stlookinnice and above average. > suspicious phone calls asking for donationse nothg new ... t these calls are hitting the valley pretty hard right now. dave courvoisier)) and they've got a lot of peoplenfused and calling 8n your side's michelle mornsen forvice in tonight's "got a oblem? tell michelle." ((michelle mortensen)) folks seem to be getting local calls from people claiming to be with the nevada fire fighters associations and they're asking for donations for the burn fund. sandy emailed me after getting 2 calls in one day. she asked me ... is this legit? sounds strange to me. and how'd they get my cell? to get to the bottom of this ... i went straight to the nevada firefighters association. they told me they aren't seeking donations right now .. and they don't do so by phone. but they were aware of a group called the firefighter and

calling our area with local numbers seeking donations for a burn fund. i did some digging into that group on charity- navigator.org. i found out they're based in california ... and scored zero out of 4 stars on the site. the reason....only 3 percent of funds raised go to the burn fund. so what should you do if you get a call seeking donations of any kind? first .. ask for the 501 - 3c number. if they can't give it to you ... don't give them a dime. second ... ask what percentage of the funds given .. .actually go to the cause. then you can better decide if it's something you want to give to. after becoming aware of this .. i also called tim szmansky with las vegas fire ... he told me no local fire departments or organizations will ever call you for donations ... nor will any local burn units. so now you know ... what to look out for ... and what to ask .. if you get a call for a charitable donation./// ((denise valdez)) it's never

((dave courvoisier)) especially if you're talking about the defending high school national champs. chris maathuis here to tell us bishop gorman may have a tough time winning it all again. ((chris maathuis)) gorman's kenny sanchez evaluates his non confernce schedule.. and it's really challenging, plus.. .he lost a big time player on the team. details straight ahead. plus... who was unlv's last true wide body big man? and how things mirror today's team with the team in 2002. that's coming up here on 8 news now. <

8 news now this is sports with chris maathuis. > ((chris maathuis)) this isn't the first time the rebels have had trouble on the road. it's a tough place to win... ya go back through the years and

that won many conference road games. right now the rebels are 1-6 on the road... they only had 2 and 3 road wins under rice. even during lon kruger's 30 win season in 2006- 07, unlv won only 4 conference roadies. good thing the rebels are home this weekend, where they are 5-2. and as added motivation, it's reno making a stop at the mack. (( )) todd simon/coach; "been through it with coach kruger and then from afar and then back here, you understand the significance of it, like any rivalry the passion gets jacked up on both side and you want that win, cause it means a lot to a lot of people." jerome seagears/guard; 'we know we can beat em.. it's just about us going out there and being confident and playing our game." this will be the 82nd meeting between the two schools, unlv leads the overall series by a whole bunch. rebels are 32-8 against the pack here in las vegas and unlv is favored by 6. but nevada is the hottest team in the league having won 3 in a

the rebs will go into this game without any big men... in fact it's been so long since unlv has had a big wide body true center in the paint. you'd probably have to go back to elmore spencer.. who had big shoes to fill and nobody has filled em yet. rebels have a lot of athleticism.. but when derrick jones is your big guy at 6-7, 190 or dwayne morgan at 6-8, 205... you're in trouble.. just like back in 2002 with the late charlie spoonhour, who coached at unlv had to deal with the same 'size' issues and this what he did because of the lack of size. (( )) charlie spoonhour/former rebel coach; 'i see a lot of rosters with 4-5 big guysnow that's great because they can continue to roll big guys at cha. but we're going to be quick too, so somebody is going to have to do more then just stand around the basket and knock shots away, they're going to have to be able to catch the ball and they're going to have to be able to defend us too." spoon litterly came within one shot each of his three years at unlv of getting his team to the ncaa tourney. there's some pretty big games on the prep schedule tonight.

the big division one boys and girls titles will be decided. a lot of fans might be interested in eldorado and coronado over at liberty. but maybe even more will want to see gorman and centennial.. that's a 7 pm tip at arbor view high. highlights at 11. ((chris maathuis)) looking way ahead to gorman's football season... they've really got a terrific schedule. they had an impressive non conference schedule last year, it's even better this year. but they will be missing one of their biggest pieces of talent. wide receiver tajon lindsey has left the program for family reasons. he's being looked at by a lot of big tyme schools. as for their impressive non conference schedule. they've got cedar hills, texas, who's won back to back state titles in 2013 and 2014. sanchez says they'll be a top 10 team to start the year. then cocoa, florida, this is a tema that lost in the state semi's each of the last 5 years. kahuku hawaii is next and they won their state title last year going 13-0 and finished in the top 25., st. john bosco... out of california will be a top 10 team.. one of the best teams in cali. and st. thomas florida... won the state title last year

((denise valdez)) > thanks for watching for 8 news now at 6. we're always on at las vegas now dot com and our app ... this is "jeopardy!" here are today's contestants -- a journalist and documentary producer from denver, colorado... a digital marketer originally from austin, texas... and our returning champion,