The state's education assistance fund will receive a jackpot from Rivers Casino after getting involved in legal issues over how the recently opened casino tried to attract gambling addicts.
The Des Plaines casino was fined $25,000 for giving cash advances and rewards cards to self-proclaimed gambling addicts, according to the Chicago Tribune.
While the casino was relatively new, people who placed themselves on the state's don't-let-me-gamble roster received the incentives through promotional material.
Bill Keena, Rivers general manager, said that the violations were a mistake and that Rivers Casino reported themselves to the Illinois Gaming Board. Their self-reporting action drew them a lower fine that what is typical.
“We take our responsibility to be a good corporate citizen very seriously and to ensure the safety of our patrons,” said Bill Keena, General Manager of Rivers Casino Des Plaines in a statement. “We abide by all the rules set forth by the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) and work hard to keep those individuals on the Self Exclusionary List out of the casino. In this instance we realized that we had made a mistake and we reported it immediately to the IGB.”
Hollywood Casino Aurora received an $800,000 penalty for mailing promotions to 146 self-restricted gamblers in 2008.
