Crime rose, then fell, after opening of casino

Tuesday, February 22, 2005  

The chief of police in a town near the Fond du Lac Ojibwe Reservation said crime rates rose after the tribe opened its casino but fell a few years later.

Wade Lamirande was a detective when the Black Bear Casino opened in the early 1990s. He said gambling-related thefts rose and the number of pawn shops increased from one to four.

After a few years, the number of gambling-related thefts and two of the pawn shops closed. He said a small percentage of residents are problem gamblers.

In 1994, a state survey showed 3.2 percent of adults had experienced problems because of gambling and 1.2 percent showed signs of being pathological or compulsive gamblers, The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.

Get the Story:
Taking a chance on casinos (The Minneapolis Star Tribune 2/22)
pwlat