PGCB Adds Another Eight to Involuntary Exclusion List After Children Left Unattended
One woman left an 11-month-old in a vehicle outside Rivers Casino
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has barred eight more people from gambling at casinos across the state after finding that five adults left minors unattended while they played.
In the latest cases, the board said one woman left an 11-month-old in a vehicle at Rivers Casino Philadelphia for nearly two hours, while two people left an 11-year-old in the food court at Wind Creek Bethlehem for 75 minutes.
Another pair left an 11-year-old and two dogs in a car at Live! Philadelphia Casino for 23 minutes.
The board said such conduct creates a “potentially unsafe and dangerous environment” for children.
‘Don’t Gamble with Kids’ Promotion
The sanctions place the adults on Pennsylvania’s Involuntary Casino Exclusion List, which prevents them from entering or gambling at any casino in the state. Three further people were also added, although the board did not publish the underlying details of those cases.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board said the action was taken through its Offices of Chief Counsel and Enforcement Counsel.
It also continues to promote its “Don’t Gamble with Kids” campaign, which is aimed at stopping adults from leaving children in cars, garages, hotel rooms or other casino areas.
Exclusion List Past 1,500
The latest exclusions fit a broader enforcement pattern in Pennsylvania, where the regulator has repeatedly used public sanctions to deter parents and guardians from treating casinos as places where children can be left unsupervised.
Earlier this year, 18 people were barred in one swoop for child neglect at casinos. Four of the cases involved minors left alone in cars or hotel rooms while adults gambled. In one matter, a woman allegedly left two children, ages 8 and 13, in a vehicle at Valley Forge Casino Resort for 52 minutes.
The board said the new cases bring the total number of people on its various exclusion lists to 1,512, underlining how frequently these lapses continue to surface.
