Judge partially grants motion in slot fraud case

David Strow

Friday, June 25, 1999 | 11:09 a.m.

A federal judge has ordered every major casino operator and slot manufacturer to present materials that will show how slots and video poker machines have been represented to players for the last decade.

The order by visiting Federal Judge David Ezra of Honolulu comes in response to a motion for discovery filed by four slot players suing about 70 casino operators and slot manufacturers in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas. Attorneys for the plaintiffs had argued that the materials are necessary to prove their case for class action status.

Under Ezra's order, the defendants must give up materials that show how players are told slot machines and video poker machines work. For example, a video poker machine manufacturer would have to show if signs on the machine told players the machine deals from a 52-card deck.

It is not a complete victory for the plaintiffs, who were also seeking documentation on how the games actually operate, and how the defendants understood the games' operation.

Ezra denied that request, saying it related to the merits of the case, rather than the argument for class action status. Mary Boies, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said she intends to seek those documents again during the discovery process for the lawsuit itself.

The plaintiffs will also receive materials used in marketing the machines to players over the past 10 years.

"That had been made available to them last year, but they hadn't been totally examined," said defense attorney Steve Morris.

The lawsuit, first filed in Florida in 1994, accuses the manufacturers and casino operators of producing products that intentionally mislead players on their chances of winning. The four plaintiffs, frequent slot players over the past decade, say the machines enticed them to play by deceiving them on their chances of winning.

For example, they argue that the "52-card deck" claim on video poker machines is false, and the machines actually deal from 10 preselected cards. The lawsuit names about 70 defendants.

Once the documents have been examined by the plaintiffs, Ezra will rule on the plaintiff's request for class action status for their lawsuit. Class action status would raise the number of eligible plaintiffs from four to thousands, greatly increasing the stakes in the lawsuit. The plaintiffs argue class action status is necessary because of the sheer number of potential litigants.

Hearings on the case have yet to begin, and will start after Ezra rules on class action status.