Missouri: Law enforcement officials say caseload higher since casino opened

Law enforcement officials say caseload higher since casino opened
By EDWARD HUSAR
Herald-Whig Staff Writer


LaGRANGE, Mo. -- Ever since Mark Twain Casino in LaGrange opened for business 10 years ago, law enforcement officials in Lewis County have seen an increase in bad checks charges and domestic violence cases.

"Our bad check cases at least doubled since the casino opened," Prosecuting Attorney Jules "Jake" DeCoster said. "The people go and blow their paycheck at the casino, and then they write bad checks for their gas and groceries. We've had a number of people who have gotten into real financial difficulties because of the gambling problems they have."

DeCoster said he also has noticed an increase in domestic violence cases since the casino opened.

"The husband goes and blows his paycheck at the casino, and when the wife objects, he takes it out on her," he said.

DeCoster said the sharpest annual jump in bad check and domestic violence cases occurred during the first year the casino opened.

"It hasn't continued to increase, but it hasn't gone back down," he said.

Lewis County Sheriff David Parrish said he, too, has noticed an increase in caseload for his deputies since the casino opened.

"There hasn't been a major influx of fraud cases or theft cases," Parrish said. "But every year, we see a handful of cases involving people who are being served civil papers for maybe losing their house or not paying a credit card, and we know some of those people to have gambling issues."

Parrish said the Sheriff's Department over the years has dealt with several cases involving people "who have gambling problems that lead to them taking some money from someone else to help pay bills. But other than that, it hasn't been what I would call a major, major problem."

Before the casino was licensed to operate in LaGrange, DeCoster and Parrish both testified before the Missouri Gaming Commission to express concern that the casino would significantly increase their caseloads. They were hoping the commission would put pressure on the city of LaGrange to share some of the tax revenue the city would receive from the casino for serving as the "home dock city."

The state's gaming law specifies that a cut from the casino's revenue be given to the home dock city, but it says nothing about county agencies that may be affected by the opening of a casino.

Early on, the LaGrange City Council responded to these concerns by giving the Sheriff's Department a couple of used city squad cars. One year, it gave the prosecuting attorney's office $25,000 to offset the higher caseload. However, DeCoster said no other funding has been provided because city officials eventually decided it wasn't justified.

The prosecutor and sheriff have simply absorbed the extra casino-related costs into their budgets.

"We're just dealing with it," DeCoster said.

Parrish said his office has no qualms with the city of LaGrange or the casino.

"The city of LaGrange has tried to work well with the sheriff's office. They have a pretty good Police Department right now that helps run things in town, and the folks who run the casino have always been very good to work with," he said. "If I still had a chief complaint, it would be with the Missouri Gaming Commission for allowing this casino to be put here without ensuring that the citizens who surround the city of LaGrange, or the county, had something to offset any costs that we might have a result of the casino.

"The Gaming Commission should be able to set aside some funding to assist the county. The state gets its cut. The city obviously gets its cut. The casino gets its cut. The Missouri State Highway Patrol puts officers on there making $70,000 a year to be security guards. So all those people are necessary, apparently, until you get outside the city limits of LaGrange. Then the Gaming Commission doesn't feel like the sheriff's office should have any of that revenue to offset the cost of even one investigation that might be a white collar crime of some sort."

DeCoster said his office routinely gets called on to handle court cases that involve people charged with trespassing for entering the casino after they have placed themselves on a "voluntary exclusion" list that's supposed to prevent problem gamblers from coming inside.

DeCoster also said he sees cases where casino customers are charged with stealing by claiming the credits left behind on a slot machine by a previous patron. "I get a lot of those," he said.

DeCoster said one time he was called upon to prosecute an 85-year-old woman who was charged with stealing when she picked up a $10 bill she found on the casino floor, not realizing that any errant money is considered to be the casino's property.

The woman was let go.

DeCoster admits he would have a hard time finding a jury willing to convict someone of a crime for picking up money off a casino floor. Most Lewis County jurors, he believes, would consider that "finder's keepers."