I think I can hear Castille screaming from miles away …
Anti-casino activists yesterday filed a complaint against state Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille, accusing him of breaching judicial ethics by blasting the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit accusing his predecessor of colluding with the legislature to secure judicial pay raises. read more »
Law enforcement has long turned a blind eye to illegal video poker machines, fixtures at many corner bars and social clubs across the state.But with an influx of cash for gambling enforcement because of slot-machine casinos, authorities in some areas are stepping up efforts to crack down on illegal gambling, hitting VFW and American Legion halls, and even firehouses.
Dropping a quarter in the slot and playing a hand of poker is legal; manipulating the machines to provide payouts – such as the kind authorities say are made behind the bar or in backrooms of some establishments – is not. read more »
The city’s first casino would be delayed for years if state regulators were to revoke a license given to a Detroit businessman who has since run into financing troubles, city and county leaders said Tuesday.The businessman, Don Barden, is seeking to transfer his slots license to a new group headed by Chicago billionaire Neil Bluhm. Barden would keep a minority stake in the project.
Some lawmakers last week asked the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board to revoke Barden’s license rather than approve the ownership changes. The legislators also suggested the gaming board might rush its approval of the Bluhm-Barden deal to rescue the Pittsburgh casino project.
The House Gaming Oversight Committee will hold a public hearing today at the state Capitol to consider legislation legalizing video poker machines in certain locations to raise money for nonprofit organizations.The bill, sponsored by Rep. Thomas Caltagirone (D., Berks), would legalize video poker machines in fraternal organizations, fire halls and veterans clubs – which have been the focus of stepped-up enforcement against illegal gambling. Since the opening of the state’s slots casinos, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has distributed $3.1 million in grants to law enforcement agencies to crack down on illegal slot machines. read more »
State Sen. Vince Fumo said that he had offered operators of the proposed Foxwoods and SugarHouse casinos $50 million and $20 million, respectively, last year to abandon their waterfront sites.Fumo spoke of his efforts to relocate the casinos yesterday in a wide-ranging interview in which he addressed his fears and hopes about his forthcoming corruption trial, doubts about the Convention Center expansion, and national threats to civil liberties.
Fumo said that the cash he offered to the casinos – which would have helped to offset relocation costs if they had moved – would have come from state gaming revenues, but the casinos refused the offer. read more »
The troubled credit markets that are creating problems for home buyers, cities and other borrowers are also disrupting the capital-intensive casino industry — driving up construction costs and delaying, if not completely scuttling, projects.In Pennsylvania, two would-be casinos in the Pittsburgh area are seeking special treatment from gambling regulators on grounds of economic hardship. read more »
The owner of a Harrisburg-based Internet broadcast news site testified Tuesday before a judge examining whether the secrecy of a grand jury investigation was violated.James Roxbury, who operates Roxbury News, appeared before Dauphin County Judge Todd Hoover for about 20 minutes, but would not comment afterward.
Roxbury was the first journalist to testify out of 15 who have been summoned to appear at the closed hearing to determine whether a special prosecutor should be appointed to investigate alleged leaks in the grand jury probe of casino owner Louis DeNaples.
The former head of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board will be paid a total of $120,000 over the next four months even though she no longer works for the agency.That $120,000 includes a newly disclosed $60,000 severance payment that she will receive in the fall.
Anne LaCour Neeb, who resigned her post two weeks ago citing family reasons, will earn the money between now and October, according to a copy of her contract and separation agreement made public yesterday.
While the board’s executive director, Neeb made $180,000 annually. Her last day on the job was Friday.
Slot machine gambling appears to be hurting lottery ticket sales the most in areas near casinos, although gambling alone cannot be blamed for a slowdown in Pennsylvania Lottery sales statewide, according to a legislative report.The report, scheduled for release today by the state Legislative Budget and Finance Committee, compared county-by-county sales of lottery tickets in 2006 and 2007, and found a bigger overall drop in counties that hosted a slots casino. read more »
The executive director of the state’s embattled Gaming Control Board announced yesterday that she is resigning from her $180,000-a-year post next week.But under a provision in her contract, Anne LaCour Neeb will continue to be paid until her contract officially expires in September.
Neeb announced she will be stepping down at yesterday’s Gaming Control Board meeting, citing “personal and family” reasons.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board expressed ‘‘indignation’‘ Wednesday over stories in The Morning Call about the board’s handling of a background investigation into Mount Airy Casino Resort owner Louis DeNaples.‘‘The articles are based upon misinformed assertions attributed to unnamed sources who clearly misapprehend the board’s functions and the law applicable to the board’s mission,’‘ the gaming board wrote to key state lawmakers.
‘‘It is this very type of reporting based on anonymous sources which has perpetuated misinformation of improprieties and which now appears to be forming the basis for some of the current legislative debate.’‘
Two casino executives want the state Legislature to let Pennsylvania casinos add popular table games, like blackjack, poker, dice and roulette, to the hundreds of slot machines already available for bettors.However, with Gov. Ed Rendell, a Democrat, and many legislative Republicans opposed to an expansion of legalized gambling right now, it doesn’t appear the General Assembly will act on the idea anytime soon.
Testifying yesterday on behalf of House Bill 2121, sponsored by House Democratic leader Bill DeWeese of Waynesburg, were Bill Paulos, a principal of Cannery Casino Resorts, which owns The Meadows harness track and slots parlor in Washington County, and Robert Soper, general manager of Mohegan Sun casino near Wilkes-Barre. read more »
Six state lawmakers called Tuesday for the state attorney general to investigate whether state gaming regulators broke the law when they, according to sources, ordered their investigators to change a background report on Mount Airy Casino Resort owner Louis DeNaples.The lawmakers are asking whether the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is allowed to directly influence and oversee the work of its Bureau of Investigations and Enforcement. The state’s slot machine law, the lawmakers said, makes the bureau independent of the board.
Gaming board spokesman Doug Harbach said the agency is ‘‘confident that it has complied with all legal requirements applicable to the licensing process of all slot machine applicants.’‘ read more »
The state House is moving to help nonprofit groups that raise funds by holding bingos, which have slipped in attendance as more casinos have opened around Pennsylvania and in neighboring states.The House voted 180-18 yesterday for a bill introduced by Rep. Don Walko, D-North Side. It would permit nonprofits and charities like volunteer fire companies and church groups to conduct as many as four bingo events per week, instead of the current limit of two. The nightly limit on prizes would rise to $10,000 from the current $4,000.
The trend toward lower bingo attendance was first noticed in northeastern Pennsylvania, where the Mohegan Sun casino opened near Wilkes-Barre in November 2006, and where another casino opened in the Poconos last year, Mr. Walko said. read more »
Billboards for the SugarHouse casino on Delaware Avenue herald a future with slot machines for 22 empty riverfront acres.But it’s a fascination with the past that is drawing new attention – and controversy – to the project.
It’s a past that stretches back to 1,500 B.C., when native people assembled by the Delaware River to craft tools from stones.
And it’s a past that includes a small British fort from 1777, one of 10 built by occupying troops to keep out Gen. George Washington’s soldiers. read more »
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Easton Dems
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Be reminded
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Just A Reminder...
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Roggio Needs to start Campaigning
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