Betting on trouble, again

 

 

Betting on trouble, again

www.telegram.com

EDITORIAL FOOTNOTE

When Massachusetts lawmakers approved casino gambling, we warned that trouble lay ahead. Well, the slot machines and gaming tables haven’t even begun to take their toll, and Stephen Crosby, chairman of the Gaming Commission, has again shown that he hasn’t covered his bets on ethics and transparency.

C. Stanley McGee, an assistant secretary in the Patrick administration, this week withdrew from consideration as interim director of the commission after it was learned that he was accused in 2008 of sexually assaulting a minor in Florida.

Mr. McGee stated that the matter had become a distraction and that he could not be effective.

Mr. Crosby agreed, but vigorously defended Mr. McGee, as well as his own agency’s background checks. Mr. Crosby said the charges against Mr. McGee were “wholly unsubstantiated.”

We would’t put it that way. According to reports in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Mr. McGee was arrested in December 2007, charged with sexual assault, released on $300,000 bond, and slated for arraignment on a charge of sexual assault on a victim over 12 using physical force. After Florida officials declined to pursue the case, the 15-year-old’s family hired an attorney to sue Mr. McGee. A settlement was reached in 2011.

Back in February, Mr. Crosby raised eyebrows by attending a lavish reception in his honor given by the law firm of Holland & Knight, which a day earlier had won a state contract to negotiate a casino deal. Mr. Crosby should have been more sensitive to the appearance of impropriety then. He should certainly have been so in this case.

This commission has difficult and controversial work ahead. Its members and leadership must have spotless records. Thus far, Mr. Crosby has failed to demonstrate he understands that.