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Monday, August 22, 2016

Local event for National Week of Action to Stop Predatory Gambling






National Week of Action to Stop Predatory Gambling is Sept 25 through Oct 1.

One of the major actions that week is to organize more than 200 local screenings of the new film “Out of Luck” across the United States during that week. Just released in June, it’s the first feature-length documentary film to examine predatory gambling and has received rave reviews on AmazonGoogle andiTunes.
It is very easy to organize a screening in your region. This brief guide shares the few steps involved about How to Organize a Movie Screening.
We are calling for 100% participation from you and everyone who believes in improving the lives of the American people, freeing us of the dishonesty, exploitation, addiction and inequality that commercial gambling spreads.

Do your part. Please commit two hours during the week of 9/25-10/1 to participate in organizing a movie screening in your area. If you can't commit the time, then please participate by making a gift of $25 or more tax-deductible to support our work locally.

You can sign up online to hold a screening at this link, and then share the link with your email and social media networks. Or, you can send an email to SPG at mail@stoppredatorygambling.org

You and I have the power to stop the policy of predatory gambling in our region and our nation but don't think it will happen without your sacrifice because it won't. To phase it out in your community, you need to stop it in your state. To stop it in your state, you need to stop it nationally.

A major step in such an effort is to awaken people’s conscience about the issue. The film Out of Luckprovides a powerful opportunity to stir people’s consciences to take action. Let’s make the most of it.

Thank you.
Best,
Les Bernal
National Director
Stop Predatory Gambling




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Improving the lives of the American people, using education and advocacy to free us of the dishonesty, exploitation, addiction and inequality that commercial gambling spreads.

West Virginia: Lawsuit against Mountaineer dismissed







Lawsuit against Mountaineer dismissed


AUG 21, 2016

STEPHEN HUBA


WHEELING — A judge has dismissed a wrongful death lawsuit that touched on the question of whether casinos and slot machine manufacturers have a responsibility to prevent compulsive gambling by patrons.
The lawsuit against Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort, filed by the widow of Scott Stevens in 2014, claimed the Hancock County casino had a duty to intervene in the compulsive gambling habits that allegedly drove him to suicide in August 2012.
U.S. District Court Judge Frederick P. Stamp Jr.’s order of dismissal came nearly four years to the date after Stevens fatally shot himself in a Jefferson County park — and a day after Stacy Stevens voluntarily withdrew her case.
Her attorney, James G. Bordas Jr. of Wheeling, could not be reached for comment. Mountaineer routinely does not comment on litigation.
The lawsuit claimed that, from 2007 to the day he died, Stevens was a regular patron at Mountaineer, where he played the slot machines and, over time, became hopelessly addicted to gambling.
To support his habit, he embezzled more than $7 million from his workplace, where he was chief financial officer, and emptied his family’s savings, retirement account and his children’s college funds, the lawsuit said.
Even after an IRS audit discovered the embezzlement and Stevens was fired, he continued playing the slot machines at Mountaineer for 10 more months, never telling his wife about his secret life as he dragged his family deeper into debt, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit also named as a defendant Reno, Nev.-based slot machine manufacturer International Game Technology Inc. and former Mountaineer parent company, MTR Gaming Group. Its main allegation was that the IGT slot machines used at Mountaineer are“inherently dangerous” and are designed to keep people playing to the point where they can’t stop.
“The products were not a passive medium through which gamblers enacted a pre-existing addiction but, rather, an interactive force that eroded players’ capacity to make reasoned decisions,” the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit also accused IGT of intentionally concealing from patrons algorithms and other design features that govern slot machines’ win-loss functions — features that have been written about in books such as “Addiction by Design: Machine Gambling in Las Vegas” by MIT anthropologist Natasha Dow Schull.
“No other form of gambling is known to manipulate the human mind as much as slot machines,” the lawsuit said. “Playing these machines produces in numerous gamblers a trance-like state in which their ability to make rational decisions is eroded. Players become addicted to a dissociated mental state of diminished self-awareness and the suspension of a sense of time, money value and one’s immediate surroundings.”
Ultimately, the lawsuit stalled on the question of whether casinos and slot machine suppliers have a “duty of care” to protect patrons from compulsive gambling.
Stamp put the question to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, in order to address motions filed by the defendants to dismiss the case. Justice Brent D. Benjamin, who wrote the opinion, concluded that no duty of care exists under West Virginia law and, therefore, a lawsuit claiming negligence could not be sustained.
Benjamin cited similar cases in Indiana and New Jersey in which courts found that the state’s prerogative in regulating the gaming industry superseded any responsibility on the part of casinos and vendors.
In the case of West Virginia, racetrack casinos such as Mountaineer are already heavily regulated by the West Virginia Lottery Commission, operating under strict rules set by the state Legislature.
“The hardware and software components of the (slot) machines are required to precisely comport with statutory parameters, and ‘each video lottery terminal approved for placement at a licensed racetrack must conform to the exact specifications of the video lottery terminal prototype tested and approved by the commission,'” Benjamin said, citing the West Virginia Code.
What’s more, Benjamin said the state sets aside $150,000-$500,000 annually for its Compulsive Gambling Treatment Fund and maintains an exclusion list whereby patrons with a compulsive gambling disorder can be prevented, either voluntarily or involuntarily, from entering casino premises.
Because legal gambling is so entwined with the state, the duty of care rests with the Legislature not the private sector, Benjamin concluded.
“State law regulates virtually every facet of casino gambling and its potential impact upon the public,” he said. “The state has so thoroughly integrated itself into the provision and operation of the (slot) machines on every level … that its involvement cannot readily be divorced from that of its licensees and key suppliers.”
Stamp said the supreme court’s ruling was “dispositive,”meaning it settled the issue.




Sunday, August 21, 2016

Christie, New Jersey, Expanded Gambling, Trump





A deputy New Jersey attorney general wrote in 2007 that Donald J. Trump's flagship casino, the Taj Mahal, had reported that it paid $2.2 million in ...


New Jersey governor Chris Christie said he plans to cast his ballot in favor of expanding casinos outside of Atlantic City and into parts of northern New ...


TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Tuesday that he plans to cast his ballot in favor of expanding casinos to the ...


In 2010, New Jersey auditors had been working for years to collect overdue taxes—totaling nearly $30 million—owed by Trump's casinos in the state.


Questionable Tax Deal Between Trump Casinos Under Gov Christie
There are questions about whether Governor Christie gave Donald Trump a tax break on his bankrupt Atlantic City casinos. Donald Trump's casinos ...

christie: i'm good with north jersey casinos
Governor Christie says he wants casinos to come to North Jersey. Christie told reporters on Tuesday that he will vote in favor of a ballot question that ...


Gambling Industry Approaching Saturation in Northeast United States




Gambling Industry Approaching Saturation in Northeast United States




Steve Wynn’s Boston Harbor casino resort will open in 2019 and bring the northeastern gambling industry one giant step closer to possible market saturation. (Image: Nancy Lane/Boston Herald)

The gambling industry in the northeast region of the United States was confined to Atlantic City for decades. The first legal commercial casino opened in the New Jersey beachfront town back in 1978, and until the early 1990s Atlantic City largely enjoyed a monopoly on gambling on the East Coast.
The US Supreme Court ruled in 1987 that federally recognized Indian tribes have the right to self-regulate casino games not barred by state law. The ruling effectively ended Atlantic City’s stronghold.
By 1996, half of the 50 states had some form of land-based gaming. Today, analysts are worried the continued expansion across northeastern states will soon lead to market saturation.
“The market in New England is continuing to grow,” gaming analyst Clyde Barrow told the Associated Press this week. “But there will be a saturation point.”

The All-Mighty Slot

Massachusetts’ Plainridge Park Casino slot parlor opened in June 2015, and the state will welcome the $950 million MGM Springfield in 2018 and $1.7 billion Wynn Boston Harbor in 2019. New York’s slots-only racetrack parlor Resorts World Casino near JFK International Airport is considering expansion, and two upstate casinos are expected to open in 2017.
In northeast Pennsylvania, Sands Bethlehem controls the market over Mount Airy Casino Resort. The Philadelphia area is home to four casinos with a fifth possibly on the way.
Rhode Island has the Twin River Casino, and then there’s Connecticut’s Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun resorts. The Mashantucket Pequot, Mohegan, and Mashpee tribes are all looking to build additional casinos near the Connecticut-Massachusetts border to compete with MGM and Wynn.
And don’t forget that place called Atlantic City where seven casinos will remain after the Trump Taj Mahal closes in October.
The northeast is the most densely populated region in the US, but it’s becoming flooded with gambling destinations. For now, however, the market seems to support the numerous casino floors.
Gambling saturation is largely tested through slots revenue as the machines still generate the most income for operators.
According to Fitch Ratings, casino companies want and need each slot to win $200 per 24 hours. Anything below that number might signal an oversaturated market.
In June, Mohegan Sun’s 5,110 slots won $297 each day. Foxwood’s 4,451 machines took in $260.
Plainridge Park’s 1,250 slots collected over $370 daily in July, its best monthly performance in 2016.
While the gaming economy remains strong in the northeast, “saturation” remains a constant concern.
“I try not to use the word. No sense cursing the darkness,” Foxwoods CEO Felix Rappaport told the AP.

Diversifying Interests

MGM and Wynn are two of the most experienced gaming operatives in the industry. Their substantial investments in Massachusetts show their own research supports additional casino facilities in the northeast.
But unlike some venues in New England and the Mid-Atlantic, MGM Springfield and Wynn Boston Harbor will be focusing as much on the resort and entertainment aspect as gambling. For example, Wynn’s harbor walk will accompany the resort’s high-end shopping center and spa and feature four upscale restaurants.
Gambling revenue now plays second fiddle in Las Vegas to nongaming activities. Regional resorts are expected to follow the trend and adapt to market conditions.
Mohegan Sun is celebrating its 20th anniversary in October with a comedy gala featuring Kevin Hart and Sarah Silverman, and will welcome numerous A-list musicians including Tim McGraw, Bruno Mars, KISS, and Carrie Underwood.
The new casino, six years in the making, is Wynn Resorts Ltd.'s second in Macau, the only place in mainland China where casino gambling is ...



DP Blotter: Battery, Trespass Charges As Casino



DP Blotter: Battery, Trespass Charges As Casino


Myriam L. Larson, 40, of 400 W. Randolph St., Chicago, was charged with criminal trespass to property at Rivers Casino, 3000 S. River Rd. She was apprehended at 4:24 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 14. Police did not release any additional details about the incident and the Journal & Topics Newspapers has filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the city for the report.



Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe asks to join casino land dispute





REVIEW REEL WAMPS for additional perspective.

 



Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe asks to join casino land dispute

Maine’s Harness Racing Industry Struggling Despite Influx of Slots Revenue




Maine’s Harness Racing Industry Struggling Despite Influx of Slots Revenue

  AUG 17, 2016
More than a decade ago, Maine voters gave the green light to slot machine gambling in the state. In making their case to voters, supporters vowed that some of the revenues would prop up the state’s ailing harness racing industry. But recent data show that since then, more than $100 million dollars in slot machine proceeds have gone to the industry in Maine — and it’s still struggling.
Back in 2003, lawyer, horse farmer and sometime racehorse driver William Childs spent a lot of time in Augusta, trying to convince the Legislature to approve slot machines in Maine.
“It would revitalize harness racing,” he said at the time. “We pretty much race for the same purses now that my grandfather raced for in 1970, and of course the costs haven’t remained the same.”
Childs and others viewed slots as a way to revive the beleaguered harness racing industry, keep pastures from getting paved over with parking lots, blacksmiths busy shoeing horses, breeders buying feed and trucks.
Voters bought in, and the referendum they passed required slots to be linked with commercial tracks in Scarborough and Bangor.Profits would go to the state’s general fund and to a cascade of other programs, including the harness racing industry.
Slot revenues have boosted purses, helped the state’s 26 agricultural fairs and made direct payments to Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs — no strings attached.
The horses are still trotting at Bangor Raceway, a few hundred yards from Hollywood Casino, which became the state’s first legal gambling venue in 2006. But Scarborough voters refused to authorize slots at their track, and horsemen say that was a big setback.
Still, state records show that more than $100 million has been sluiced from gamblers’ pockets to Maine’s harness racing industry and agricultural fairs. But has it done the trick?
To try to find out, I recently visited Childs’ horse farm, a 30-acre bit of rural bliss in Westbrook. Race Me Stables is an active place where horses are trained and boarded, lessons are given, and equestriennes can practice their paces. Childs prepared one of his racing pacers, RaceMeAndroid, for a run around a half-mile training track.
More than a decade ago, Maine voters gave the green light to slot machine gambling in the state. In making their case to voters, supporters vowed that some of the revenues would prop up the state’s ailing harness racing industry. But recent data show that since then, more than $100 million dollars in slot machine proceeds have gone to the industry in Maine — and it’s still struggling.
Back in 2003, lawyer, horse farmer and sometime racehorse driver William Childs spent a lot of time in Augusta, trying to convince the Legislature to approve slot machines in Maine.
“It would revitalize harness racing,” he said at the time. “We pretty much race for the same purses now that my grandfather raced for in 1970, and of course the costs haven’t remained the same.”
Childs and others viewed slots as a way to revive the beleaguered harness racing industry, keep pastures from getting paved over with parking lots, blacksmiths busy shoeing horses, breeders buying feed and trucks.
Voters bought in, and the referendum they passed required slots to be linked with commercial tracks in Scarborough and Bangor.Profits would go to the state’s general fund and to a cascade of other programs, including the harness racing industry.
Slot revenues have boosted purses, helped the state’s 26 agricultural fairs and made direct payments to Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs — no strings attached.
The horses are still trotting at Bangor Raceway, a few hundred yards from Hollywood Casino, which became the state’s first legal gambling venue in 2006. But Scarborough voters refused to authorize slots at their track, and horsemen say that was a big setback.
Still, state records show that more than $100 million has been sluiced from gamblers’ pockets to Maine’s harness racing industry and agricultural fairs. But has it done the trick?
To try to find out, I recently visited Childs’ horse farm, a 30-acre bit of rural bliss in Westbrook. Race Me Stables is an active place where horses are trained and boarded, lessons are given, and equestriennes can practice their paces. Childs prepared one of his racing pacers, RaceMeAndroid, for a run around a half-mile training track.

“We’re still here,” he said, soon after a blacksmith finished re-shoeing the horse. “Without the referendum, without the racino in Bangor, Bangor would not have survived, Scarborough Downs I don’t think would have survived. The fairs would have been severely impacted — The industry would have folded up.”
Childs said the purse supplements have boosted his winnings enough to help him keep the stable’s doors open, at a time when prices - for hay and grain, for veterinarians and taxes - all keep going up.
“Without it this would be house lots,” Childs said. “It still may be house lots.”
The industry did see a bump after the 2003 referendum, with more owners, racehorses and breeding horses coming on the scene. But the longer-term trend is in the other direction. Between 2007 and 2015 the number of Maine-registered harness racing stallions, for instance, that were available for breeding declined by more than half, from 73 down to 30. The number of foals has declined to just 83 last year.
“We still have people that want to buy horses,” said Dianne Perkins, president of the Maine Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association. “Our goal right now is to find mares, get people to breed mares. We need horses.”
Perkins said its important to understand that the numbers were affected by the closure, for the owners’ personal reasons, of two of the largest breeding outfits. There’s also the black eyes the industry gets when horse doping cases come to light, a bad trend she says has been rising.
And then, she says, there’s something else.
“OK I am going to say right now,” she said, “there’s a little bit of lack of interest, OK?”
Some owners, she says, are having a tough time finding appropriate races to enter in Maine, and they are shipping their stock out of state, often to Amish buyers.
And at Scarborough Downs, the center of the state’s harness industry, times are a little tough.
“There is an issue with horse supply right now,” says Mike Sweeney, spokesman and track oddsmaker at Scarborough Downs, which has canceled six race days this summer after failing to secure commitments for some 400 horse entries needed to fill out the race cards.
Like many in the industry, he says the rejection of a slots facility at Scarborough really hobbled the industry’s revival efforts. And even at Bangor, he said, the decision to locate the new gambling hall several hundred yards away from the track bypassed an opportunity to raise interest in racing among a new generation of gamblers — who have so many gaming opportunities not just at proliferating casinos, but online too.
In some other states, Sweeney says, some tracks have flourished when located right next to slots parlors.
“That’s never happened here in the state of Maine, and I think that’s one of the reasons the industry really is in a state of decline right now,” said Sweeney, president of the Maine Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association.
Scarborough and Bangor don’t publish attendance records, but here’s another indicator of where things are headed: Since 2006, the amount of money bet each year on races in Maine has fallen by more than half, from $68 million to $33 million last year.
State Rep. Louis Luchini, an Ellsworth Democrat who co-chairs the Joint Committee on Legal and Veterans Affairs, which has oversight of Maine’s gambling sector, sees the industry’s benefits to the state, but he points out that there are more pleasure horse owners than racehorse owners in Maine, and that they also benefit the economy.
“And we don’t give them any money from the casino,” he said. “[The horsemen’s] argument makes sense. They do have a big impact with agriculture, with the veterinarians, farming. But if you’re giving $100 million to something, you really have to make sure that it works.”
If Luchini is re-elected, you can bet he’ll be taking a close look at slot machine funds in the next legislative session.
Scarborough, meanwhile, will be asking for permission to reduce the number of race days it holds, while holding on to the $1 million-plus annual stipend it gets from the slots.
And members of the harness racing industry? Look for them to find ways to try to breathe new life into a pastime they hope still has a future in Maine.