Move afoot in Lansing to relax standards used to license Detroit casino employees

9.14.07

State may relax casino hire rules
House bill would allow applicants with criminal records to be considered for nongambling jobs.

Charlie Cain / Detroit News Lansing Bureau

LANSING -- As Detroit's new, permanent casinos prepare to open, Michigan may relax the legal requirement that requires all casino workers to clear an exhaustive background check.

That should let some applicants with criminal records to at least be considered for some casino jobs.

Dealers, croupiers and others directly involved in gaming would still be subject to the investigation, required to obtain a state license.

But cocktail waitresses, custodians and others not directly associated with gambling would not, under a bill sponsored by [House Bill 5212] Rep. Steve Tobocman, D-Detroit...

...Tobocman said casinos already conduct background checks before turning names over to the Michigan Gaming Control Board for licenses. He said it's not likely that casinos would hire someone with a felony conviction for such crimes as larceny or fraud. But people convicted of other crimes, who have paid their debt to society, should not be automatically penalized for life, he said.

The gaming board does not license an applicant convicted of any felony; a misdemeanor involving gambling, theft, dishonesty or fraud; or those who are "unsuitable" due to questions of "integrity, moral character or reputation."

...The Michigan Gaming Control Board opposed the bill last year. The board's new executive director, Richard Kalm, said he wants to review the bill before deciding whether to maintain that position.

"We do eliminate convicted felons from working in the gaming area," said Kalm, who spent more than 30 years in the Macomb County Sheriff's Office...

..."we haven't eliminated people for misdemeanors, just crimes involving honesty, like larceny and misdemeanor fraud.

"We do a darn good job with the way the legislation is. We want to review it to make sure we're not taking a step back," he said.

A spokesman said MotorCity Casino, which plans to hire as many as 2,500 additional employees for its new casino, said it has taken no position on the bill. (Complete Story)