The Lakeside Casino in Osceola agreed to a $5,000 fine Thursday after in connection with a person who had signed a lifetime ban from gambling in Iowa. The Racing and Gaming Commission administrator said the person signed the ban in August of 2010, but then in June of this year the person received a players club card from the casino and in July received a promotional mailer from the casino.
Lakeside general manager, Bob Thursby, told the commission there was a problem with the casino’s process for blocking problem gamblers.
“This past summer I recognized the inadequacy of our systems and how fraught they were to human error. We completely dismantled the systems, and put in place a much more rigorous routine,” Thursby said. This was the second violation of this type for the casino in the last 365 days.
Thursby says his work to improve the system led to the discovery of the second violation. “If I had to do it over again, I would do it the same way, even at risk of finding a second or third violation, just to have it right going forward,” Thursby said.
He told the commission the new system should prevent any future problems. The commission had the option of imposing an administrative penalty from $3,000 to $20,000.