LV Hilton sues gambling debt case figure

Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2000 | 11:07 a.m.

Park Place Entertainment Corp.'s Las Vegas Hilton hotel-casino sued to recover alleged gaming debts from a Dallas gambler, who had earlier lost a class-action lawsuit accusing prosecutors from Clark and Douglas counties of illegally collecting debts for casinos.

In a Clark County District court lawsuit, Hilton sued Matthew Fleeger, alleging he failed to pay $73,000 of an $85,000 gaming debt he had incurred from May 22 through Dec. 11, 1998. The suit said Fleeger paid only $12,000 and that "cheques (he) presented as payment to his account had bounced."

Fleeger could not be reached for comment on the allegations.

Fleeger, who had accumulated unpaid markers from Caesars casinos in Clark and Douglas counties, sued that casino operator and local Nevada prosecutors, alleging they violated the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by using Nevada's criminal enforcement provisions to collect private casino debts.

His complaint contended that markers weren't negotiable checks or drafts, but were instead IOUs or promissory notes, representing a debt owed or a line of credit granted.

But U.S. District Judge Philip Pro in April ruled against Fleeger and upheld the state's controversial practice of using bad-check laws to prosecute gamblers with unpaid casino markers or other casino credit agreements.