Judge Constrains Ohio Casino Petition Circulators
A move yesterday to block the progress of a petition seeking a ballot issue to legalize four casinos in Ohio achieved success today, as a judge issued a temporary restraining order to change the process of collecting of more signatures. Judge James C. Evans told supporters of the state's latest attempt to introduce casino gambling that he was ordering them to avoid deceiving residents about their proposal.Dave Betras, chairman of the Mahoning Democratic Party, had filed fore a restraining order after a video appeared on Youtube showing petitioners spreading misinformation to quizzical citizens.
Evans' order states the neither the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee nor their affiliates would be allowed to "misrepresent the contents, purpose or effect of the initiative proposing an Amendment to the Ohio Constitution to allow a single casino within each of the cities of Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo."
Betras has complained the bill doesn't permit the introduction of a casino in the Youngstown vicinity, and says proponents of the bill have purposely led residents of the area to believe it will not only bring a casino, but provide more general economic relief for the Mahoning Valley through the creation of regional jobs.
Ohio voters keep rejecting casino gambling laws, as groups that are pro-gambling as a rule oppose Ohio bills for their exclusivity. Penn National Gaming, a major supporter of the current proposition, was the primary source of funding for lobbying against last year's casino measure, since the company wasn't included in potential licensees.
