Hard Rock challenging gaming board complaint

Thursday, March 4, 2004 | 11:13 a.m.

The Hard Rock Hotel said Wednesday it will fight a complaint filed by Nevada gaming regulators that claims the boutique Paradise Road property's advertising violates state rules because of references to illegal activity and sexually suggestive content.

Hard Rock Hotel lawyer Jeff Silver filed a formal answer Wednesday to the state Gaming Control Board's Jan. 21 three-count complaint, which also charged the hotel with violating terms of a 2002 settlement reached in response to an unrelated complaint.

Silver's four-page answer spells out his complete disagreement with gaming regulators and requests a hearing before the Nevada Gaming Commission.

One regulation is "vague, ambiguous and overbroad, therefore unenforceable," while the advertisements cited in the board's complaint are "forms of commercial speech protected by the First Amendment (to the U.S. Constitution)," the answer noted.

Silver's response specifically denies more than a dozen Control Board allegations.

The three-count complaint could result in limitations to or loss of the Hard Rock's gaming license, as well as a fine of as much as $300,000.

A couple of gaming lawyers at Wednesday's Gaming Control Board meeting said they were surprised the Hard Rock would fight the complaint. The lawyers, who declined to be named, said they supported the property's effort, but wondered whether challenging regulators was worth the risk.

Senior Deputy Attorney General Toni Cowan, the board's lawyer, said before the answer was filed that regulators are confident they can prove the allegations in the complaint if the Hard Rock forces a hearing.

Nevada Gaming Commission Chairman Pete Bernhard would be responsible for scheduling the hearing, but he also could ask the parties to try to resolve their differences through mediation.