The Daily Rundown - April 16, 2026
Advocates gathered in Las Vegas this week to demand the release of Rickie Slaughter. Groups like the ACLU and NAACP attended the rally. They claim the original trial involved withheld evidence. Witnesses failed to identify Slaughter in a second lineup. The jury never heard this information. That's according to the Nevada Current. A judge vacated his conviction in March, but he remains at High Desert State Prison. Slaughter has spent nearly 22 years in prison.
Slaughter was convicted on multiple charges, including attempted murder, for a Las Vegas home invasion and shooting. Slaughter spoke via a recorded statement. He maintained his innocence. Supporters called on Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson to drop the case. Slaughter advocated for prison reform during his incarceration. He lost his parents while behind bars.
Four-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson has agreed to a supermax contract to stay with the Las Vegas Aces, the team announced Wednesday. It’s a three-year deal worth $5 million, making her the highest-paid player in the league. Last year, Wilson led the Aces to their third championship title in four years. She was the league’s MVP, shared the Defensive Player of the Year, and made the All-WNBA First Team. Her signing means the Aces will bring back their core players for another run at the title.
State Attorney General Aaron Ford said Wednesday that Nevada had reached a settlement with online gaming platform Roblox. He said it would create a safer environment for children online. Users must have their age verified so that children have access only to age-appropriate content. The platform also will use behavior monitoring to identify users who may have been aged incorrectly. It’s meant to give parents more control over what games their children play.
Adult users and those under 16 cannot chat unless they are listed as trusted friends on the platform, which could require parental consent. Roblox has around 152 million daily active users and is used by nearly half of U.S. children under 16 years old, Ford said. Read the full story here.
As data centers rapidly expand across the Mountain West, researchers say a key question is getting harder to answer: how much water are they actually using? A new study led by the University of Illinois finds that much of that information isn’t publicly available, creating challenges for communities trying to plan in a region where water is already scarce. Data centers — the massive facilities that power everything from streaming to artificial intelligence — rely on water to keep their computer servers from overheating.
But a fast-growing problem is how little is known about their total water use, said co-author Ana Pinheiro Privette. “If we don’t have the data, if we don’t have the transparency, we’re just walking in the dark right now,” she said. Pinheiro Privette said the gap includes both direct water use at facilities and indirect use tied to electricity generation. Hear the full story by the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel here.
Nevada State University’s athletics department has found a home. The Henderson-based university said Tuesday that it would be a full member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics starting July 1. The Nevada State Scorpions are set to join the Great Southwest Athletic Conference, or GSAC, as a provisional member. Beginning in fall 2026, Nevada State will expand its athletics offerings beyond women’s flag football and men’s track and field.
New programs are slated to include women’s track and field, as well as indoor track and field and cross country for both women and men. The NAIA is a national college athletics governing body that primarily supports smaller institutions. GSAC is an athletics conference within the NAIA, made up of universities that are aligned in size, academics, athletics, and overall student experience.
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