Columnist Sandy Thompson: Gambling impact on families explored

Sandy Thompson

Friday, Aug. 17, 2001 | 4:25 a.m.

Sandy Thompson is vice president/associate editor of the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at 259-4025 or e-mail at thompson@lasvegassun.com

FAMILY COURT Judge Cheryl Moss is taking a closer look at problems families face in divorce and custody cases.

Moss, one of three new judges who took the bench in January, has started a pilot program in cases where one side accuses the other of gambling away child support or community assets. She refers the case to an agency for assessment. She wants to know whether there is a real problem or a "borderline" problem. Once that is determined, she can suggest treatment.

Moss hopes other judges will address the issue as well. So does the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, which is hosting a program Sept. 20 for all judges and legal professionals on the impact of problem gambling on individuals and families. The program is being sponsored by the law firm of Christensen-Sondgeroth.

"The goal is to share information with the judges on what is problem gambling, since they're encountering the consequences of it," says Carol O'Hare, executive director of the council. "We want to learn from them how we can make sure they have the resources to effectively deal with folks impacted by problem gambling."

Moss and O'Hare are familiar with problem gambling but from different perspectives. Moss has attended seminars on compulsive gambling, and her mother has lectured on the topic and worked with problem gamblers. O'Hare is a recovering compulsive gambler.

"It's not easily seen. It's easy to cover it," O'Hare says of problem gambling.

The courts don't have mechanisms in place to find out whether gambling caused people to be in the legal system, she says. For example, a grandmother who embezzled money from her employer is guilty of a crime, but if she stole because of a gambling problem, she needs help with that addiction. The same goes for the mother who has gambled away the child support or the father who can't feed his family because he blew his paycheck in a casino.

Problem gambling is a mental illness, O'Hare says. Courts should deal with it in the same manner as drug and alcohol abuse. It's especially important in custody cases. O'Hare asks: Would you give custody of children to a crack addict or alcoholic? No. Nor should you give custody to a compulsive gambler who leaves them alone to spend time in casinos.

It's a scene O'Hare knows intimately. Her three children were latchkey kids because she spent her time gambling in casinos. She hit bottom more than 10 years ago when she began writing bad checks, stealing money from her children and lying about her habits. She was unemployed and faced eviction from her apartment. One night she won $1,000, but instead of paying the rent, she gambled it away.

"I thought I was having an emotional breakdown. I was prepared to swallow a bottle of Valium," O'Hare says. "I loved my kids, but I didn't know how to fix my mess."

Instead, she called a friend who told her that life wasn't the problem, it was the gambling. O'Hare went to Gamblers Anonymous and learned to do things differently. It was a struggle, but she is making it.

"It's diagnosable and treatable," O'Hare says.

But it's also disguised, especially in Family Court cases. If the money numbers or facts don't add up, or kids are being left alone, O'Hare says the right questions should be asked: Is there a gambling problem here?

"Problem gambling is not a victimless addiction," O'Hare says. "It impacts spouses and children, which is why we began to look at Family Court." *

If you or someone you know may have a gambling problem, call the council's 24-hour helpline, (800) 522-4700. For information on the Sept. 20 program, call 369-9740.