October 2016 | Page 2 | Stop Predatory Gambling

Measuring Industry Externalities: The Curious Case of Casinos and Crime

Crime, Lowering the Standard of Living for Ordinary Citizens, Regional Casinos, Studies

The predatory gambling business dismisses crime increases which parallel the introduction of casinos as being the simple result of increased population. This landmark study by economists Earl Grinols and David Mustard exhaustively reviews the reality of casinos and crime. Most gambling studies are done very soon after the opening of casinos and are funded by gambling interests. This independent academic review is far more extensive in its research, and illustrates the escalating occurrence of crime as local gambling impact “matures.” The study shows that casinos increased crime after a lag of 3 to 4 years. It also shows, by studying the crime rates in counties that border casino host counties, that the data suggests casinos create crime, and not merely move it from one area to another. Neighbor county data indicates that casino crime spills over into border areas rather than is moved from them.

Measuring Industry Externalities – The Curious Case of Casinos and Crime

U.S. Department of Justice Links Gambling and Crime Among Arrestees

Crime, Lotteries, Online Gambling, Regional Casinos, Sports Betting

U.S. Department of Justice – Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice, July, 2004
This report, funded and published by the U.S. Department of Justice studied people who had been arrested in Las Vegas and Des Moines, Iowa. They found significant connections between gambling and crime. “More than 30 percent of pathological gamblers who had been arrested in Las Vegas and Des Moines reported having committed a robbery within the past year, nearly double the percentage for low-risk gamblers. Nearly one-third admitted that they had committed the robbery to pay for gambling or to pay gambling debts. In addition, about 13 percent said they had assaulted someone to get money.

DOJ Study- Gambling and Crime Among Arrestees

Exploring the Limits of Responsible Gambling: Harm Minimization or Consumer Protection?

Focus, Lotteries, Lowering the Standard of Living for Ordinary Citizens, Online Gambling, Predatory Business Practices, Public Health, Regional Casinos, Sports Betting, Studies

Predatory gambling in Australia has matured faster than that in America, providing valuable lessons on addiction. Mark Dickerson, a noted academic from the University of Western Sydney, shared his work at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Essentially, Dickerson proves conclusively that the only truly “responsible” gamblers are professional gamblers. Gambling is designed, marketed and packaged to carry customers beyond the point of reason and control. Dickerson believes there are methods the gambling operators could employ to ameliorate these dangers. But operators are unlikely to voluntarily jeopardize revenues from its victims. The study provides remarkable insight into how predatory gambling works and what it does to its customers. The second report below was also written by Professor Dickerson and it deals with similar issues as the study above. In the second report he notes the difficulty of identifying problem gamblers and suggests ways the operators could reduce harm.

Limits of Responsible Gambling

Reframing Responsible Gambling

Lottery Revenue Comes Largely From People Already Receiving Government Support

Government Revenues from Gambling, Lotteries, Lowering the Standard of Living for Ordinary Citizens, Online Gambling, Regional Casinos, Sports Betting, Studies

Studies of lottery spending, including this study from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis in 2008, show lottery revenue comes largely from Social Security, unemployment and other forms of government support. Government, in other words, is paying government — with an enormous amount of money being siphoned off by gambling interests. It also reflects a key reason why predatory gambling worsens state budget deficits over time and taxpayers end up footing the bill.

St Louis Federal Reserve Lottery Study 2008

Citizens Are Not Adapting to Availability of Predatory Gambling But They Are Adapting to Losing More Money Than Ever Before

Absence of Gambling Research Integrity, Lotteries, Online Gambling, Public Health, Regional Casinos, Sports Betting, Studies

Some researchers funded by predatory gambling interests attempt to argue that after the introduction of extreme forms of gambling into a community addiction rates will spike but then, over a period of years, addiction rates will decline once people “adapt” to its availability. It is called the “social adaptation theory.” Here is a memo showing why this theory is misplaced and how the only thing people are adapting to is losing more money than ever before.

Rates of Addiction Increase Because of Predatory Gambling

Meet Your New Neighbor: How Slot Machines are Secretly Designed to Seduce and Destroy You, and How the Government Is In On It

Fraud, Lowering the Standard of Living for Ordinary Citizens, Predatory Business Practices, Public Health, Regional Casinos

MUST-READ. Here’s what may be the best investigative news story about electronic gambling machines and the partnership between the predatory gambling trade and our government written to date. The reporter was Isaiah Thompson of the Philadelphia City Paper and it appeared in January 2009.

Meet Your New Neighbor