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Health, sanitation violations found in state prisons, memo says

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Health, sanitation violations found in state prisons, memo says


A memo sharing the results of regular health and sanitation inspections of Nevada’s state prisons revealed several “critical” violations in multiple facilities.

In advance of next week’s meeting of the State Board of Prison Commissioners, the Nevada Department of Corrections shared a memo detailing the results of these inspections by the Division of Public and Behavioral Health from the office division’s chief medical officer, Ihsan Azzam.

Six state prisons had critical dietary and sanitary violations, and the two prisons inspected for medical and dental services both had deficiencies.

These inspections must be conducted regularly under state law, but only two prisons per year have to be inspected for medical and dental compliance.

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Sanitary violations

High temperature dishwashers were found in disrepair at three prisons: High Desert State Prison, Florence McClure Women’s Correctional Center and Northern Nevada Correctional Center, according to the memo.

At High Desert State Prison, some sinks were found without sanitizer. Cockroaches — both alive and dead — were found in food storage areas.

Chemical containers were found without labels to prevent misuse at Southern Desert Correctional Center.

According to the memo, Northern Nevada Correctional Center was “operating under unsafe conditions which involved the culinary wastewater plumbing system,” with floods of wastewater found in a crawl space under the culinary from a broken pipe that had been left in disrepair.

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Also at the facility, signs of rodents were found in the warehouse though not in the culinary or bakery. The memo said that the prison is making efforts to “eliminate the ongoing infestation.”

Medical deficiencies

This year, Northern Nevada Correctional Center and Florence McClure Women’s Correctional Center were up for inspection.

Only one deficiency — damage to the vinyl material of an examination table and dental chair — was found at the woman’s prison. This type of damage presents an infection control risk, according to the memo.

Six deficiencies were found at Northern Nevada Correctional Center, including an exposed electrical hazard, obstructed fire sprinklers and damaged vinyl.

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Inspectors found that the facility had not been following its policy on the sterilization of medical and dental instruments, the memo said. Several drugs and biological supplies were also found to be outdated or expired.

The Nevada Department of Corrections did not respond to requests for comment on the violations and deficiencies.

The State Board of Prison Commissioners is scheduled to meet in Carson City on Dec. 19, with a remote viewing site available in Las Vegas at the Nevada State Business Center.

Contact Estelle Atkinson at eatkinson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @estellelilym on X and @estelleatkinson.bsky.social on Bluesky.

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Oregon lands commitment from Nevada punter

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Oregon lands commitment from Nevada punter


Oregon has found its next Australian punter.

Bailey Ettridge, who averaged 44.66 yards on 47 punts at Nevada this season, committed to transfer to the Ducks on Sunday. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.

From Lara, Australia, Ettridge had 15 punts over 50 yards and 18 inside opponents’ 20-yard lines this season. He also had two carries for 26 yards, both of which converted fourth downs.

Ettridge replaces James Ferguson-Reynolds, who is averaging 41.64 yards on 33 punts for UO this season. Ferguson-Reynolds and Ross James are both out of eligibility after the season.

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Ettridge is the first scholarship transfer to Oregon this offseason and his addition gives the Ducks 81 projected scholarship players in 2026. He is the lone punter presently on the roster.



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‘Winnemucca Day’ helps fuel Backus, Wolf Pack to 58-40 win over Utah State

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‘Winnemucca Day’ helps fuel Backus, Wolf Pack to 58-40 win over Utah State


RENO, Nev. (Nevada Athletics) – Nevada Women’s Basketball returned to Lawlor for the first game of 2026, hosting Utah State.

The Pack picked up its first conference win of the season with the 58-40 victory over the Aggies.

Freshmen showed out for the Pack (5-9, 1-3 MW) with Skylar Durley nearly recording a double-double, dropping 12 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Britain Backus had five points to go along with two rebounds and a season high four steals.

Junior Izzy Sullivan also had an impactful game with 17 points, going 6-for-11 from the paint and grabbing five boards. She also knocked down Nevada’s only two makes from beyond the arc, putting her within one for 100 career threes.

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The Pack opened up scoring the first four points, setting the tone for the game. It was a close battle through the first 10 as Utah State (6-7, 2-2 MW) closed the gap to one.

However, Nevada never let them in front for the entire 40 minutes.

Nevada turned up the pressure in the second quarter, holding Utah State to a shooting drought for over four minutes. Meanwhile, a 5-0 scoring run pushed the Pack to a 10-point lead.

For the entire first 20, Nevada held Utah State to just 26.7 percent from the floor and only nine percent from the arc, going only 1-for-11.

For the Pack offense, it shot 48 percent from the paint. Nevada fell into a slump coming out of the break, only scoring eight points.

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It was the only quarter where the Pack was outscored.

The fourth quarter saw the Pack get back into rhythm with a 6-0 run and forcing the Aggies into another long scoring drought of just under four and a half minutes.

Durley had a layup and jumper to help with securing the win.

Nevada will remain at home to face Wyoming on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

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EDITORIAL: Nevada’s House Democrats oppose permitting reform

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EDITORIAL: Nevada’s House Democrats oppose permitting reform


Politicians of both parties have promised to fix the nation’s broken permitting system. But those promises have not been kept, and the status quo prevails: longer timelines, higher costs and a regulatory maze that makes it nearly impossible to build major projects on schedule.

Last week, the House finally cut through the fog by passing the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act. As Jeff Luse reported for Reason, the legislation is the clearest chance in years to overhaul a system that has spun out of control.

Notably, virtually every House Democrat — including Reps. Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford from Nevada — opted for the current regulatory morass.

The proposal addressed problems with the National Environmental Policy Act, which passed in the 1970s to promote transparency, but has grown into an anchor that drags down public and private investment. Mr. Luse notes that even after Congress streamlined the act in 2021, the average environmental impact statement takes 2.4 years to complete. That number speaks for itself and does not reflect the many reviews that stretch far beyond that already unreasonable timeline.

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The SPEED Act tackles these failures head on. It would codify recent Supreme Court guidance, expand the projects that do not require exhaustive review and set real expectations for federal agencies that too often slow-walk approvals. Most important, it puts long-overdue limits on litigation. Mr. Luse highlights the absurdity of the current six-year window for filing a lawsuit under the Environmental Policy Act. Between 2013 and 2022, these lawsuits delayed projects an average of 4.2 years.

While opponents insist the bill would silence communities, Mr. Luse notes that NEPA already includes multiple public hearings and comment periods. Also, the vast majority of lawsuits are not filed by members of the people who live near the projects. According to the Breakthrough Institute, 72 percent of NEPA lawsuits over the past decade came from national nonprofits. Only 16 percent were filed by local communities. The SPEED Act does not shut out the public. It reins in well-funded groups that can afford to stall projects indefinitely.

Some Democrats claim the bill panders to fossil fuel companies, while some Republicans fear it will accelerate renewable projects. As Mr. Luse explains, NEPA bottlenecks have held back wind, solar and transmission lines as often as they have slowed oil and gas. That is why the original SPEED Act won support from green energy groups and traditional energy producers.

Permitting reform is overdue, and lawmakers claim to understand that endless red tape hurts economic growth and environmental progress alike. The SPEED Act is the strongest permitting reform proposal in years. The Senate should approve it.

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