Police: Drug Round Up Nets 260,000+ Pills

(RENO, Nev.) -- The Reno Police Department says that its recently held  Prescription Drug Round Up event resulted in the collection of 268,180 prescription pills.

Officials made the announcement on Thursday, describing the event as a success, and adding that the drugs collected would now be safely destroyed. The event was the fifth of its kind held by the department since 2009. Police officials say in total, the five events have resulted in the collection of 555,151 pills.

The department will host another drug round up event on October 29 in conjunction with the DEA’s National Take-Back Day.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Smart Grid Power Line Projects to Create Jobs

(WASHINGTON) -- On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Energy announced that thousands of jobs will be created when seven power transmission line projects are accelerated.

The projects will be in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Minnesota and Wisconsin, and will focus on creating a smarter power grid and renewable energy resources. Removing administrative roadblocks for the projects is expected to create jobs and result in more collaboration between federal agencies in order to make the U.S. more competitive internationally, said Energy Secretary Steven Chu.

"Building a smarter electric grid will create thousands of American jobs and accelerate the growth of domestic clean energy industries translating into more energy choices and cost savings for American consumers, and a more secure energy future for our country," said Nancy Sutley, chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Steve Jobs’ Father in Reno Declines to Comment on Son's Death

(RENO, Nev.) -- The biological father of Steve Jobs said Wednesday that he was aware of his estranged son’s death but declined to comment.

The Reno Gazette-Journal reports that John Jandali, 80, who is a casino executive in Reno, said, "I really don't have anything to say" about the death of his son.

Jandali, the vice president at Boomtown Hotel Casino and a former professor at the University of Nevada, Reno, also said, "I know [Jobs is dead]."

Jandali reportedly said in August that he wanted to meet Jobs, who was given up for adoption as a baby.

News reports say that Jobs never spoke publicly of his biological father. Reports also reveal that he did not have contact with him as an adult.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Cops Release Photo of Car Seen Near Fatal Downtown Shooting

Reno Police Department(RENO, Nev.) -- Reno police have released a photo of a vehicle in connection with their investigation into Sunday's shooting in downtown Reno, which left one person dead and three other people injured.

The vehicle seen in the surveillance photo is described as a white or light colored sedan with a black or dark stripe or colored object running down the mid-line of the sides of the vehicle, and a dark colored hood. The car was spotted in the area of the shooting, which occurred around 3:15 a.m. on E. Second Street.

Officials say Macario Ortiz was killed and three others injured, after someone opened fire on them with an assault rifle in a parking lot in the area.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Nevada Congressman Takes Issue with Senate over Job Creation

(CARSON CITY, Nev.) -- Freshman congressman Joe Heck, R-Nevada, said he and his House colleagues are doing their part to move legislation aimed at job creation and blamed the Senate for its sluggish pace.

"Republicans have already brought forward and passed out 14 different bills that would spur job creation," said Heck on ABC’s Top Line. ”They’ve been sent over to the Senate where they’ve languished with the exception of two of them.”

Heck also introduced a jobs bill that he says has garnered bipartisan support in a very short period of time.

“The president’s job act has been out for about a month now and has got zero co-sponsors. My bill has been out for a week, and we’ve got 11 bipartisan cosponsors on it already,” said Heck.

Heck’s bill focuses on shortening visa processing times for business travelers to drive up tourism to the U.S, a move he says will add 1.3 million jobs and $860 billion to the economy. Obama’s jobs bill is much broader in scope; it aims to cut payroll taxes and boost money for teachers, firefighters, the unemployed and infrastructure.

“We’re back at the district every weekend,” said Heck, who serves Nevada’s 3rd congressional district. “We just came back from the August work period. We just had a district work period last week, and we’re holding town halls in person.”

Heck added he understands “everybody’s frustrated” and noted a lot of that frustration likely stems from partisan gridlock.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio