West Virginia Lottery to Charities: Casino Night Fundraisers Are Illegal

July 2, 2015

West Virginia Lottery officials say “casino night” fundraisers conducted by charitable organizations are illegal but the Lottery does not have authority to crack down on such events.

County prosecutors have shown little interest in pursuing charges against members of local charitable organizations when the Lottery has forwarded information about illegal “casino nights” to them, Lottery director John Musgrave said.

Musgrave and the Lottery Commission discussed the issue during the commission’s meeting June 29, The Charleston Gazette reported.

“It is illegal, and we want to stop it, but we have to figure out how,” Musgrave said.

State law prohibits possession of roulette wheels and other gaming devices that aren’t licensed by the Lottery.

“We think it’s a major violation,” Musgrave said.

Commissioner David McCormick Jr. of Morgantown said such events could hurt the state’s casinos.

“If they have these casino nights in Morgantown and Clarksburg, that’s probably somebody not going to Wheeling to gamble,” he said.

Often, Lottery officials do not learn of “casino night” fundraisers until after the events are held, usually when local newspapers publish pictures and articles about them, Musgrave said.

Lottery counsel Danielle Boyd said the Lottery has sent letters to organizations informing them that the events are illegal lotteries subject to prosecution.

McCormick said raising awareness would help solve the problem.

“It’s just that they don’t know,” he said of the charitable groups. “You just need to get the word out that you can’t do this.”

Musgrave said legislation may need to be sought to give the Lottery Commission authority to crack down on the events.

Topics Virginia West Virginia

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Latest Comments

  • July 2, 2015 at 2:54 pm
    Stephen Tallinghasternathy says:
    Marry your cousin, OK. Charity casino night, absolutely not.
  • July 2, 2015 at 2:50 pm
    ExciteBiker says:
    Do these casino nights involve actual gambling? I've been to many casino night fundraisers. There is no money involved. You usually get a set amount of chips to play with for ... read more
  • July 2, 2015 at 2:48 pm
    UW Supreme says:
    Really? Really? These charitable events are going to take away from casino operation revenue? The WV Lottery Commission is bloated and full of crap. Just another attempted ove... read more

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