Further Reading

Wife of a pathological gambler seeks to eliminate gambling

Stanton,

With almost complete hopelessness I search the Internet looking for some professional advice and with a bit of luck help.

My husband is presently serving time in Federal Prison. He pled guilty to one count of Bank Fraud.

We live in a gambling resort area.

My husband worked for a bank for 25 years. He created multiple fictitious loans to fund his gambling addiction. When this was discovered his response was, "Thank God it's finally over!"

No one individual has suffered or lost more due to my husband's criminal activity than me.

He is my husband of 30 years and after the shock of being told what he had done and with counseling I believe and accept that only a severe illness would have caused him to put everything he had worked his entire life for in jeopardy. I know this man. He is a good man and despite what he has done I love him.

However, I think it is time that someone takes on the gambling industry and state and make them accountable for a dysfunctional social policy.

Reading on your website:

"This direct relationship between the state and addictive gambling versus the state's indirect role in drug and most alcohol addiction has critical implications."

Is there is not an attorney willing to take on the state or the industry? Many took on the cigarette industry yet no one is willing to take on the gaming industry because the state has a central role in gambling and benefits so much from its revenue.

I desperately want to find a capable, skilled, knowledgeable, competent attorney eager to take on this challenge. My biggest problem is I'm the "David" who wants to take on "Goliath." In other words I have no money to pay for the services I am seeking. It would involve contingency only yet I do believe this is a cause that is a good one that many will benefit from. I also believe that in winning the pay off would be well worth the time and effort.

Sylvia

Dear Sylvia:

You are a very understanding wife. I would contact the organizations that fight organized gambling around the country, including those who opposed the creation of gambling casinos in your state originally. There have been legal challenges by people who lost fortunes gambling, like Leonard Tose, former owner of the Philadelphia Eagles, who claimed the casinos plied him with alcohol while he was an alcoholic.

Good luck in seeking redress from those who benefit from gambling, including the state. But your husband will have to learn some self-restraint in the meantime.

Stanton