Geronimo Meets The Sopranos

On Tuesday March 7th, the California voters unanimously voted to bring the Mob back for a second run. Actually this will be their first run in California with the Indians, but they're old hat at these things, when it comes to setting up casinos and immerse themselves in the tireless job of having to reorganize from the ground up like the old days in Las Vegas.

What am I talking about? Well let's go back a ways then I'll bring you up to speed. Proposition 1A was the voters approval of the Indian gamming issue that allows three times as many slot machines as before as well as "Vegas" style table games meaning they can now bank the blackjack and Pai Gow games as well as Caribbean Stud Poker and Let it Ride Poker. So what does this have to do with the Mob? Well, part of the bill also includes the approval of Governor Davis's gaming compacts. Which plans to set aside background checks for people seeking employment as well as the more important LICENSURE. The licensing of a casino owner, executives, or even heads of gaming and accountants. It is now legal to hire ex-felons and people with ties to organized crime. You think I'm kidding?

California Governor Gary Davis signed into law the tribal gaming compacts between 57 Indian tribes. The compact states; "The tribe may retain in it's employ a person who's application for a determination of suitability or for a renewal of such determination has been previously denied. The reasons the state may find someone unsuitable include Felony convictions, Misdemeanors involving moral turpitude, association with organized crime activity or wilfully defying a federal or state investigatory agency investigating crimes related to gambling."

What that says in laymen terms is they can hire any felons, ex-felons, people committing moral crimes (rape, morals crimes involving children, domestic violence, basically any crimes) criminals that are being investigated by any agency (FBI, Gaming commission, local and state police, IRS, you name it, they can operate a casino in the middle of a murder, rape, or even a casino investigation if they wanted). And if that's not enough, one provision of the compacts says "The compacts don't provide for state oversight of slot machine payouts or resolution of gaming disputes under Section 9 of the compacts, any disputes will first be determined by NEGOTIATION". Which means on any slot payoffs, the casino can tell you they'll only pay a percentage of the payout, or stretch the payouts over a legenthy period of time and if you don't like it, there's no recourse, it basically takes any regulatory ability by the Gaming Control Board out of their legal hands and leaves you at the mercy of the casinos. If they want to pay a million dollar payout over the period of 50 years, there's no recourse for you. You can complain to the ... huh? Well I guess the casino host.

Professor I. Nelson Rose, a noted gaming legal expert at Whittier College of Law said the compacts "grandfather" in tribal or any outside gaming employees who did not meet licensing "suitability" standards. In otherwords, IT'S INDEPENDENCE DAY FOR THE MOB, FIREWORKS ARE GOING OFF OVER NEW JERSEY AND CHICAGO. It opens the door for organized crime to move into the casinos. This is perfect, they can come in, without background checks, ex-felons, anyone in organized crime may apply and even hold licenses. Then they hire their boys and on and on until they're re-rooted back into California Indian gaming, heads of casino operations, hard and soft count management, cage management, counting rooms (remember the movie "Casino" with the guys skimming in the counting room, filling their pockets) they'll head security and since they'll be regulating their own slot machine payouts, with any disputes being resolved by THEM. "HEY, YOU'LL TAKE IT AND YOU'LL LIKE IT, SEE?" And since it doesn't provide for sole ownership or licensing by tribal members only, the next casino managers name will end in an "O" and it won't be GERONIMO. It'll more likely be a guy named GINO.

The next step in this process is the fact that the Las Vegas gaming companies like the Boyd Group (Sam's Town, California, Fremont, Stardust) as well as the Harrah's group are buying into California Indian Gaming by building the casinos for the indians, but although they'll provide the money and some of the management, the Indians will retain the main control of operations, which means in effect, the Mob will eventually be doing business with the Vegas boys again. I'll give them 2 years before you hear about a major investigation into the Indian gaming skimming and organized crime ties. Then they move into the related businesses. The liquor sales, food sales, slot machines and that's just the legal stuff they'll be providing. Don't you think the casino management will hire the purchasing agents for their casinos and who do you think they'll be? Who do you think they'll be purchasing from with a kickback going back to the guy who hired him. So Uncle Vito will hire cousin Vinny to buy their booze from Danny the stugatz from Chicago that kicks back to Uncle Vito and on and on. Then the dealers cut an extra toke envelope to Uncle Vito, Cousin Vinny and Vinny's pet Schnauzer.

So thanks to the approval of the liberal California voters, who realize even ex-felons need to work and good old Governor Davis of California, who realizes the Mob are just another group of ignored minorities that need to have a voice(or we'll kill ya) or maybe he's getting an envelope too along with his doggy... The Boys are Back in Town.