Gambling News Stories: May 26, 2000 to June 5, 2000
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 5, 2000
Hoosiers worry casino's location will hurt industry
Gaming experts say the arrival of a third riverboat casino in southeastern Indiana will not harm the gambling industry, but area residents are worried the Belterra will create fierce competition among employers already strapped for reliable workers. The Belterra is slated to open in August near the Markland Dam in Switzerland County, south of two casinos already established along the Ohio River. The Argosy docks at Lawrenceburg and the Grand Victoria docks at Rising Sun.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 5, 2000
LV company honored for responsible gaming efforts
Harrah's Entertainment Inc. of Las Vegas said it will be inducted into the Gaming Hall of Fame this fall as the recipient of the first-ever special achievement award for responsible gaming. The award is to be presented at the annual Gaming Hall of Fame dinner coinciding with the World Gaming Congress, which is co-sponsored by the American Gaming Association and International Gaming & Wagering Business.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 5, 2000
Gary banks on casinos' success to revive city
GARY, Ind. (AP) - Casinos may soon be bankrolling city revitalization efforts, ending the Steel City's historic reliance on the steel industry as its financial backbone. Mayor Scott King is expected on Tuesday to ask the City Council to consider appropriating $47 million in casino revenues toward various city projects, banking on the success of the two casino boats docked just west of the city's largest employer - U.S. Steel.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 5, 2000
Suspect arraigned in 23-year-old murder case
RENO, Nev. - A casino poker dealer was arraigned on a first-degree murder charge Monday after DNA testing tied him to the killing of a young girl 23 years ago. Stephen Robert Smith, 57, Sparks, was ordered held without bail in the 1977 death of Lisa Marie Bonham of Martinez, Calif. The 6-year-old was snatched from a small Reno amusement park just a year after Smith was paroled from a life sentence for child molestation.
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Related story: Suspect's parole attacked
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 5, 2000
Three men sought in Bellagio robbery
Metro Police are looking for three men in connection with the Saturday morning robbery of the Bellagio hotel-casino's main cashier cage. At about 6:30 a.m., two men vaulted over the counter at the cage while a third man stood guard at the front of the cashier area, Metro spokesman Officer Steve Meriwether said.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 5, 2000
Mirage's Baldwin takes new path
Bobby Baldwin took his first step away from the imposing shadow of Steve Wynn last week, and it was no baby step. While Wynn is preparing to take over the Desert Inn and develop a new Strip project, Baldwin will be managing the properties the two developed during their 28-year working relationship. "It will be different," Baldwin said of working without Wynn. "On the one hand, I'm excited about what I'll be doing, and I'm excited about what he'll be doing at the Desert Inn. On the other hand, it will be a change going our separate ways." Wynn hired Baldwin, a past world champion at the World Series of Poker, as a consultant at the Golden Nugget in 1982. Baldwin rose quickly within Wynn's company to become the Golden Nugget's president in 1984.
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Photo of Bobby Baldwin
In thePRNewswire on June 5, 2000 - Company Press Release
Unique Slot Machine Survey To Be Released at UNLV's Casino Ops 2000
Responses of 1,300 Frequent Slot Players Reveal Playing Patterns and Preferences
LAS VEGAS - Slot manufacturing companies have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars studying slot players down through the years. They are seeking to validate their decisions about machine development, learn what the players prefer and try to predict the types of games players want in the future. But since each of these studies has been funded by the individual companies, there is always the possibility the surveys were skewed.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 4, 2000
Study shows that white professionals make up much of gambling crowd
NORWICH, Conn. (AP) - White professionals between the ages of 25 and 44 are fueling the gaming market throughout the country - and in eastern Connecticut. An annual study by an international banking firm found the U.S. gambling population tends to be more educated than the general population. And gambling is not just a male vice, Bear, Stearns & Co.'s North American Gaming Almanac 2000 reports. The study found single women are as likely to gamble as single men.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 4, 2000
American Indian tribe's joint venture gambling cruise abruptly ends
SAN DIEGO (AP) - The first partnership between an American Indian tribe and a cruise line to operate a gambling ship has sunk. The Enchanted Sun, a joint venture between the Viejas Indian tribe of Alpine and Commodore Cruise Line of Hollywood, Fla., suspended operations Friday after about two months of operation.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 4, 2000 - Column by John L. Smith
Lion of Las Vegas goes about his big business quietly
The night was coming alive at Nicky Blair's when the older gentleman, in a jacket without a tie, slid into a booth. He ordered a cocktail and joined a conversation with a couple of friends he had known more than 30 years. Most of the crowd was oblivious to the Las Vegas lion in their midst. The lion, Kirk Kerkorian, liked it that way. He might be worth billions, maintain a controlling interest in MGM Grand and be able to buy a major casino corporation the way the rest of us order a pizza, but Kerkorian has always been at home in the green-felt jungle.
In the San Diego Online on June 4, 2000
Viejas gambling cruise to Mexico unexpectedly cut
Ship leaves San Diego to be sold, officials say
Commodore Day Cruises has abruptly ended the gambling cruise to Rosarito Beach it launched in April under a partnership with the Viejas Indian band. The line's Florida-based parent company, Commodore Holdings Ltd., issued a statement late yesterday saying the cruise was suspended indefinitely. But Viejas officials said the ship, the Enchanted Sun, sailed off unexpectedly yesterday and is believed to be on its way to Singapore to be sold.
In the Los Angeles Times on June 3, 2000 - Editorial
Casino Questions Abound
Nevada-style slot machines are being trucked into California as the state evolves into a full-fledged gambling mecca--bigger, in time, than any but Nevada itself. The voters wanted casino gambling and it is here, eventually to produce revenues put at $4 billion a year. But big-time gambling, operated by California Indian tribes, brings with it a cloud of unanswered questions. How many casinos will there be? How many slot machines will be allowed? What is the state's regulatory role? Will the expansion remain modest, as Gov. Gray Davis has promised? Or will it grow unchecked?
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 3, 2000
Binion's Pahrump ranch sold
Mandalay Resort executives Mike Ensign and William Richardson buy the land for a resort.
The late Ted Binion's Pahrump ranch was sold by his estate to Michael Ensign, chairman and chief executive of Mandalay Resort Group, and the William Richardson Trust. Published Pahrump reports indicate the buyers' families intend to develop a hotel-casino, with theaters and six restaurants on the site.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 3, 2000
California tribe becomes first to build second casino
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians broke ground outside of town Friday for an $80 million casino that will make the tribe the first in California to have two gambling halls. The 135,000-square-foot casino to be built just off Interstate 10 in Southern California's desert resort region is intended to complement the tribe's existing casino 10 miles away near downtown Palm Springs. Opening is set for spring 2001.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 3, 2000
Man sentenced for role in slot machine cheating scam
A Las Vegas man was sentenced Friday to 13 months in prison for his role in a sophisticated slot machine cheating scheme, but he could regain his freedom in about 30 days. Charles Clark, 39, was arrested in late July and will receive credit toward his sentence for the time he has spent in custody since then. His attorney said the time Clark has served, combined with time off for good behavior, could result in his release by early next month. Clark participated in a cheating ring that authorities have blamed for millions of dollars in losses at casinos nationwide.
In the Detroit Free Press on June 2, 2000 - Column by Andrew N.S. Glazer
Sometimes, a lucky gambler hits it really big
ONE OF THE services I try to deliver with this column is to offer a dose of reality to recreational gamblers who choose to invest too great a portion of their disposable income in casino dreams that rarely come true. This week we take a break from reality and look at a dream that did come true. I've just returned from playing in the 31st annual World Series of Poker, a three-week series of big money poker tournaments in Las Vegas. The tournament culminates in the Big One, the $10,000 entry fee, No-Limit Texas Hold'em World Championship.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 2, 2000
New DNA testing nabs suspect in 23-year-old murder
RENO, Nev. (AP) - New DNA testing not available 20 years ago led to the arrest of a casino poker dealer scheduled to be arraigned Monday in the killing of a 6-year-old California girl in 1977. Stephen Robert Smith, 57, a convicted child molester who had been living in the Reno area since he was paroled in 1976, was charged Wednesday in the kidnapping and killing of Lisa Marie Bonham of Martinez, Calif.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 2, 2000
Ex-employee sues Bay 101 card club over firing
He claims he was let go for refusing to take part in alleged kickback scheme
Attorneys for a former Bay 101 employee have sued the San Jose cardroom and one of its executives, claiming their client was wrongfully fired because he refused to participate in an alleged kickback scheme or break federal financial disclosure laws. The suit, filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court on Wednesday, seeks unspecified damages on behalf of Jimmy Lam, a former ``floor man'' at Bay 101. He is seeking compensation for lost wages and emotional distress. The suit alleges that Lam was fired because he insisted that the club comply with a federal law requiring that all financial transactions of over $10,000 be reported to the Internal Revenue Service. The statute is intended as a safeguard against money laundering.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 2, 2000
Judge slates more trials in Binion case
Defendants charged with taking silver or participating in an extortion plot are set for court later this year.
District Judge Joseph Bonaventure on Thursday scheduled trials later this year for four people charged with crimes related to the Ted Binion murder case. The judge also granted Binion's estate permission to sell about $7 million worth of silver removed from a Pahrump vault less than two days after Binion's death in September 1998. The judge noted the estate already has spent more than $85,000 to house the silver, which jurors visited during the trial of Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish. "The Binion family has suffered enough," Bonaventure said.
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Photo of David Mattsen
In the Los Angeles Times on June 1, 2000
Commerce keeps close watch on gaming bill
AB 1416, now in the Senate, would clarify laws for card clubs, including the Commerce Casino.
COMMERCE -- City and Commerce Casino officials are closely watching a bill that not only would affect California gaming laws, but if rejected, could spell trouble for the casino and the city, as well. The California Gaming Cities Coalition is supporting Assembly Bill 1416, now working its way through the Legislature to Gov. Gray Davis' desk, which would codify laws governing card clubs in the state. AB 1416, written by Assemblyman Herb Wesson (D-Culver City), is necessary, the coalition says, to redress recent court decisions that have thrown into question the legality of player-dealer card games in California.
In the San Jose Mercury on June 1, 2000
Defense blasts case against San Jose cardroom official
Lawyers for both sides offered a sneak preview Wednesday of what to expect as the case against San Jose cardroom executive Hai Quang Huynh makes its way through the courts: During a 90-minute bail hearing, defense attorney Kenneth Robinson mounted a blistering attack on the evidence against his client, arguing that the charges are based on testimony from a man Robinson said was a loan shark and another whom he called a liar. But prosecutor Charles Constantinides called Huynh an ``extraordinarily dangerous'' figure and raised new allegations that Huynh tried more than once to have his enemies killed.
In the PRNewswire on June 1, 2000
Three-day Grand Opening Party of the Canterbury Card Club This Friday, Saturday and Sunday
SHAKOPEE, Minn., - The Grand opening of the Canterbury Park Card Club is scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Canterbury Park in Shakopee. The three-day festivities will begin with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Card Club entrance at 6 p.m. Friday, June 2. Company officials, legislators and Card Club supporters will be on hand to officially open the club, which began operations on April 19. A VIP party is scheduled in the Ascot Lounge following the ceremonies during the live racing card. Saturday and Sunday also feature Poker 101 Seminars presented by two of the world's top tournament poker players Linda Johnson and Jan Fisher. A winner of the $1 million Binion's Horseshoe World Poker Tournament, Fisher is also publisher of Card Player Magazine. Mike Caro, known throughout the poker world as ``the mad genius of poker'' will also conduct a seminar at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. More than 300 poker players have so far reserved seats at Canterbury for his seminar.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 1, 2000
New casino boat to be based in Provincetown
BOSTON - A floating casino is about to sail from a pier at the very tip of Cape Cod, months after plans were dropped for a boat leaving from a different town on the Cape. The Midnight Gambler, a 108-foot boat, will open for business in Provincetown in about a week. Leaving from Fisherman's Pier, the boat will offer two or three five-hour cruises each day.... Owned by Monte Carlo Concessions, of Boca Raton, Fla., the boat will feature slot machines, poker, craps tables and other games, as well as a buffet dinner and entertainment.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 1, 2000
K.C. casinos face fines over loss limits
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Gaming Commission on Wednesday proposed $500,000 in fines against five casinos -- including all four in Kansas City and Harrah's in St. Louis -- after an undercover sting operation resulting in allegations that gamblers were being allowed to skirt the state's $500 loss limit rules.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 1, 2000
Las Vegas-style yard sale under way at El Rancho
Call it the Las Vegas version of a yard sale. Just months away from demolition, the entire contents of the El Rancho hotel-casino are being offered for sale to the public over the next 45 days. Organizers expect to gross as much as $700,000 from the sale of everything from television sets from the El Rancho's 600 rooms to full-size horse replicas going for $750 each.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 1, 2000
Suspects arrested in Stratosphere strangling
Using Stratosphere hotel-casino surveillance video, Metro Police detectives identified two suspects and then arrested them Wednesday in connection with the strangulation slaying of a Kentucky man found dead in his hotel room Monday.
In the Las Vegas Sun on June 1, 2000
State to return silver to Binions
Judge sets trial date for Mattsen
Despite the objections of defense attorneys, District Judge Joseph Bonaventure ordered the state this morning to return Ted Binion's $6 million silver fortune to his estate. Bonaventure gave prosecutors and defense attorneys 20 days to videotape and photograph the silver, which has been stored in a warehouse since shortly after Binion was murdered Sept. 17, 1998.
In the Las Vegas R-J on June 1, 2000 - Column by John L. Smith
For sale at El Rancho: remnants of a forgettable place
I dropped by the El Rancho on Wednesday. It was pretty much as I remembered it from the last time I was there more than a decade ago. Very Western and nearly empty. I paused to pet the life-size fiberglass quarter horse inside the door and tried to conjure a thimble of sentimental tears for the gaudy little grind joint that has stood abandoned near the northern edge of the Strip the past decade. Alas, no luck. Not a single salty drop.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 31, 2000
LV CVA chief sounds a warning on threat posed by Indian casinos
Repeat visits to Las Vegas decline
A high-ranking tourism executive warned local business people who work with the tourism industry to be prepared for a downturn when Indian casinos open in California. Manny Cortez, president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, told the Latin Chamber of Commerce recently that the introduction of Indian gaming to California in the wake of voter approval of Proposition 1A last fall could be felt in some areas of Clark County.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 31, 2000
Connecticut casino owners battle over billboard
EAST LYME, Conn. (AP) - When gamblers heading north on Interstate 95 reach the interchange with Interstate 395 they have a choice to make - stay on 95 and head to The Foxwoods Resort Casino, or bear left and head up 395 to the Mohegan Sun. For three years, a billboard placed at that strategic fork in the highway had urged them to bear left. But now, an advertisement for Foxwoods appears on the sign, and that has prompted the Mohegan tribe to file a lawsuit.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 31, 2000 - by Columnist Jeff Haney
NFL fans can bet December 25 game today
The Imperial Palace sports book whetted the appetites of football bettors last week, posting lines on 55 "key games" in the 2000 NFL season. Three to four games from each week of the season are featured, from the September 3 openers to a Christmas day matchup between the Titans and the Cowboys in Week 17. Tennessee is a 5-point favorite over Dallas.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 31, 2000
MGM thinks big after merger
Generation X targeted in plans for megaresort at Boardwalk site
Fresh off their $6.4 billion acquisition of Mirage Resorts Inc., MGM Grand Inc.'s top officials are already targeting their next expansion opportunity on the Strip -- the 55-acre Boardwalk just south of the Bellagio that was acquired by Mirage in 1998. Though they're not decided on what the design will be, the company's chairman said MGM Grand is examining a megaresort geared toward "Generation X" a market largely untapped on the Strip.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 31, 2000
Three casino workers dead in murders, suicide
VICKSBURG, Miss. -- Authorities are piecing together information surrounding James Taylor's abduction and murder of his estranged wife, Daisy, and his girlfriend, Julian Jones. The incident ended Tuesday when Taylor shot and killed himself. All three worked at Ameristar Casino, though the crimes did not occur at the casino, authorities said.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 31, 2000
Many Mirage Resorts execs stay with MGM
Though Steve Wynn will be leaving Mirage Resorts Inc. today, a number of his top lieutenants are staying on with new owner MGM Grand Inc. Top on the list is Bobby Baldwin, currently president of the Bellagio and chief financial officer of Mirage. Effective today, Baldwin will become president and chief executive of Mirage Resorts, which will be operated as a subsidiary of MGM Grand.
In the Las Vegas R-J on May 31, 2000
Shareholders' approval lets Wynns move along
MGM Grand Inc.'s $6.7 billion acquisition of Mirage Resorts could close as early as today.
Elaine Wynn stood in a hallway of the $1.6 billion megaresort created by her husband, Steve, as she looked disbelievingly at a questioner. Just minutes before, Steve Wynn had presided over a 30-minute Tuesday morning meeting of Mirage Resorts shareholders at Bellagio. The chairman showed little sense of nostalgia at the pending $6.7 billion sale of the company he had built during the past 27 years. The Wynns stand to make about $500 million before taxes from the transaction with MGM Grand Inc., a sum that will help them purchase the nearby Desert Inn and its 222 acres.
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Photo: Kirk Kerkorian, left, MGM Grand Inc.'s largest shareholder, congratulates Bobby Baldwin
In the Las Vegas R-J on May 31, 2000 - Editorial
Online wagering
Senator fears Nevada gamers will jump in.
Despite industry protestations to the contrary, Sen. Richard Bryan is 100 percent correct when he says that Nevada gaming interests will become involved with Internet gambling unless Congress bans online betting. Why wouldn't they? True, most casino companies now publicly oppose Internet gaming out of pure self interest. But that's knee-jerk, backward thinking. As online betting becomes more popular and profitable, it would be foolish to ignore an opportunity to expand online.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 30, 2000
Illinois may allow gamblers to ban themselves from all casinos
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - The Illinois Gaming Board may copy a Missouri program that will allow compulsive gamblers to have themselves permanently banned from all ten state casinos. "It just seems to me as a reasonable thing to do," board chairman Gregory C. Jones said. "It seemed a little harsh ... but people with this addiction have to have a deterrent factor."
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 30, 2000
Gambling loss leads to fatal fight
ATLANTA -- An Atlanta man was killed when he returned to a house where he had lost money gambling and started a gunfight, police said. Arthur Weaver, 25, shot three people before he died Friday night. Orenthious Martin, 22, was shot in the hip and knee, Ricky Jones, 22, was hit in the upper chest, and Rhonda Rice, 23, was grazed by a bullet, according to Atlanta police spokesman John Quigley. All are from Atlanta.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 30, 2000
Estate seeks to unload silver cache
Ted Binion's estate is seeking permission from District Judge Joseph Bonaventure to sell the former casino executive's $6 million silver fortune. Attorney James J. Brown submitted a sworn affidavit late last week informing the judge that it has cost the estate $85,000 to store and transport the silver since Binion's Sept. 17, 1998, slaying. He said the estate is paying $200 a day to keep the 48,000 pounds of silver bars and coins under tight security.
In the San Fransico Chronicle on May 30, 2000
Keeping Tabs on Gaming
Davis' compact with tribes may lack real power
STATE -- Hundreds of Indian gambling regulations have just been put in place and more are coming, but whether they will keep mobsters, cheats and other scourges out of California's soon-to-be mammoth Indian casinos is about as certain as a dice roll. The bottom line beneath the convoluted legalese in the text of Proposition 1A -- whose overwhelming passage in March allows Nevada-style gaming on Indian lands -- and in the rules being drafted in its aftermath, is that it will mostly be the tribes themselves that will monitor their own gaming industry. And the regulation system is not only untried -- it is not even fully created yet.
In the San Fransico Chronicle on May 30, 2000
World's Largest Casino Mob-Free
Pequots of Connecticut cooperate with state to keep operation clean
Mashantucket, Conn. -- Twenty years ago, Charlene Jones was one of about 55 Mashantucket Pequot Indians who were living in trailers on the reservation and trying to stay alive by doing everything from selling firewood to begging for government grants. She and her fellow Pequots were being treated not much differently from the way American Indians have been treated over the past 400 years. Most of their land had been stolen or sold off by government-appointed overseers, and the tribe's presence on its reservation had dwindled as members left to intermarry with outsiders and settle in other parts of New England.
In the Press of Atlantic City on May 29, 2000
Most A.C. gaming workers shun gambling
Atlantic City gaming employees work hard for their pay, and they apparently don't want to give any of it back to their employers. That was part of the message left by gaming workers who responded to last month's Casino Call-In topic. "The hard-earned money that I do earn, I would not put it back into the casinos," one caller said. The other message: Most don't go near the gaming tables. Last month's Casino Call-In topic asked casino workers if they gamble in Atlantic City, why they do or don't gamble, and how often they gamble. The topic drew 11 responses from gaming workers. Of the 11 callers, seven said they don't gamble in Atlantic City.
In the Las Vegas R-J on May 29, 2000 - COLUMN: GAMING CHIPS
Casino boss seeks help for gambling problem
Caesars Atlantic City President Gary DiBartolomeo told New Jersey gaming regulators that he has a compulsive gambling problem and will take medical leave to seek treatment. The announcement came last week as the New Jersey Casino Control Commission prepared for a normally routine hearing scheduled for June to consider the renewal of the Boardwalk hotel-casino's gaming license. Commission records from 1994 show DiBartolomeo previously admitted to incidents of problem gambling in Las Vegas, the Bahamas and at the Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut, reports The Press of Atlantic City newspaper.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 28, 2000
Greektown's wait gives it leg up on competition, officials say
DETROIT (AP) - The Greektown Casino, Detroit's third and final gambling hall, is virtually completed, and casino officials say the facility has some distinctions that will make it worth the wait. "There's no question MGM and MotorCity got an early jump on us and have customers who'll be loyal," said William Paulos, who heads the firm, Millennium Management, that manages Greektown. But with Greektown's longer gestation period, it has been able to use MGM and MotorCity as case studies and refine its own offerings, he said.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 28, 2000
Former 'Sin City' seeks rebirth in new ima
ge NEWPORT, Ky. - Loudspeakers blaring race results, blackjack dealers and nude dancers gyrating to the throbbing beat of strip joint music were once common sights and sounds in this Ohio River city. Illegal gambling, prostitution and even murders for hire played such a vivid role in Newport's history that it was labeled "Sin City." But community leaders say the city has shed its sinful image forever and is poised for rebirth as a family-oriented entertainment center.
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Related Story: Some major milestones in Newport's history
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 28, 2000 - by Columnist Jeff German
Binion saga far from over
The Ted Binion murder probe isn't over yet, friends. Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish, two lovers-turned convicted killers, may be taking a 20-year hiatus from us courtesy of the Nevada State Prison System. But efforts remain alive to determine whether others might have helped the duo bring about the wealthy gambling figure's demise. The man behind the push is private detective Tom Dillard, who many credit with persuading police to investigate Binion's Sept. 17, 1998, death as a homicide. "I've got new marching orders," says Dillard, who works for Binion's $55-million estate. And that can't be good news for the bad guys.
In The Day Online on May 28, 2000
Having Fun at Foxwoods
New CEO called a 'likeable guy,' capable manager
William J. Sherlock, Jr. was managing a Las Vegas casino the first time he visited Foxwoods. “It was pre-Grand Pequot Tower, and I was stunned by the volume of business,” says Sherlock, who will become Foxwoods Resort Casino’s new president and chief executive officer on June 25. “It was the week before Christmas, which is dead time in the industry, and I asked a slot attendant about the business. She says, ‘It’s not usually this slow. It’s even busier normally.’ ” Sherlock, to say the least, was very impressed.
In the Las Vegas R-J on May 28, 2000 - Column by John L. Smith
With the Binion trial over, time has come to tally score
No city in the world obsesses more about winning and losing than Las Vegas. Whether you're jammed elbow-to-elbow at the craps table or sweating out your latest foolish "investment" in the Megabucks, images of the ecstatic winner and lonesome loser are everywhere. So it's only natural that locals would look at the Ted Binion murder trial with the same cynical eye. While the obvious winners are the state and the Binion family, and the losers are Rick Tabish and Sandy Murphy, there are plenty of daggers and laurels to go around. A few may surprise you:
In the Las Vegas R-J on May 28, 2000
Legal process far from over for Murphy, Tabish
Although the trial for a pair convicted of killing Ted Binion is finished, appeals are still to come.
As Becky Behnen talked of the future, a nearby bouquet of flowers bearing a handwritten note spoke of the recent turbulent past. Behnen had placed the flowers at the crypt of her brother, Ted Binion, after jurors found Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish guilty of first-degree murder on May 19. "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for justice sake for they shall be satisfied," read the note, its biblical message taken from the book of Matthew.
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Photo of Becky Behnen visits the crypt of her brother
In the Las Vegas R-J on May 28, 2000 - Column by Vin Suprynowicz
It wasn't God who made honky-tonk angels
Rick Tabish and Sandy Murphy give vultures a bad name. Tabish's father has been bailing him out of scrapes for years -- cheap extortion and larceny, mainly. His dad will have a harder time getting him out from under his murder conviction in the death of 55-year-old Las Vegas casino heir Ted Binion. Sandy Murphy's meeting with the seriously drug-abusing Mr. Binion was something out of a fairy tale -- or perhaps an R. Crumb comic. She gave him a lap dance, but refused to take his cash. Love at first ... something.
In the San Diego Online on May 28, 2000
Slots total for state's casinos is uncertain
Governor, tribes differ on number
SACRAMENTO -- Las Vegas-style slot machines are scheduled to begin arriving at California Indian casinos early next month, although no one knows how many are coming or where they are headed. Gambling opponents and even some tribal officials believed the state would try to delay shipments of the new slots until it could verify that tribes have allocated the machines in accordance with their tribal-state compacts. Holding up the deliveries, they suggested, looked to be Gov. Gray Davis' last chance to exert some leverage in his simmering dispute with tribes over how many slots have been authorized statewide.
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 26, 2000
DA says Mattsen's account false
Prosecutors don't believe David Mattsen's claim that Ted Binion's killers took him hostage the night before the Sept. 17, 1998, slaying. "After hearing that David Mattsen told people that Binion was restrained with handcuffs on Sept. 16, 1998, I knew that Mattsen was providing false information," Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger told the Sun this morning. "Numerous witnesses saw Ted Binion on the evening of Sept. 16, 1998, and in the early morning hours of Sept. 17, 1998."
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 26, 2000
Casino company fined $275,000 for collection violations
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The Nevada Gaming Commission fined the MGM Grand hotel-casino $275,000 for violations in collecting markers from South Korean gamblers between 1995 and 1997. The resort reached the agreement with the Gaming Control Board on May 12. It includes an admission of eight violations of South Korean foreign exchange laws and 13 breaches of state gaming regulations. Dan Wade, co-chief executive of the company's parent MGM Grand, Inc., apologized for the violations, blaming "a couple of employees who didn't follow the law."
In the Las Vegas Sun on May 26, 2000
Binion killing account probed
A man facing trial for stealing silver may have seen a casino heir's killers subdue and handcuff him.
Prosecutors plan to seek taped statements from people who say David Mattsen told them he saw Rick Tabish and Sandy Murphy overpower and restrain Ted Binion. Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger said Thursday he was aware that Mattsen, who managed Binion's ranch in Pahrump, had contacted Binion's sister Becky Behnen earlier this year. "She said David Mattsen had told her that Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish murdered Ted Binion on Sept. 16, 1998," Roger said.
In the Detroit Free Press on May 26, 2000 - Column by Andrew N.S. Glazer
Starting hand is key in Caribbean Stud
CARIBBEAN Stud is one of the few table games, along with Let It Ride, that have been able to claim a share of the increasingly small space casinos give to table games. Casinos prefer slots, because they don't require trained dealers or close eye-in-the-sky supervision. Caribbean Stud is loosely based on the classic American poker game, 5-card stud, although it requires none of the skills that let Edward G. Robinson defeat Steve (The Kid) McQueen in "The Cincinnati Kid." If you know poker hand values, you can play Caribbean Stud.
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