Play Meter

nEWS
Louisiana to define gambling devices
In an attempt to curb the pro-
liferation of video credit poker
machines in Louisiana, representa-
tive Emile " Peppi " Bruneau intro-
duced a bill whereby gambling
equipment would be more accu-
rately defined by law. According to
Bob Nims, AMA distributor in New
Orleans, "The bill stemmed from a
disagreement in definitions of a
gambling machine between the
state attorney' s office and the
Department of Public Safety."
The current law states that a
gambling device is any slot machine,
any machine with a cash automatic
pay out device, or a pinball or other
ball machine equipped with a
mechanism to release the number
of free plays.
The new bill will retain the above
definition of a gambling device but
will add the following : Any video
machine which accepts coins or
credits for the purpose of advancing
the odds or benefits to the player for
successful completion of the object
of play or which may reward a cum-
ulative total in excess of fifteen
games or replays.
A comment made by one of the
house members before the vote was
called, brings back memories of
what many opponents of gray area
games said could happen . Repre-
sentative Singleton stated, "If we're
going to outlaw some types of video
games, let' s just outlaw them all. "
according to the Louisiana Amuse-
ment and Music Operators (LAMOA)
president David Goudeau, " When
Representative Singleton made that
statement, several representatives
left the room so the vote was
delayed another week ."
And though Goudeau attended
the meeting , the LAMOA has
decided to remain neutral on the
issue. Said Goudeau, "The board
took a vote and decided we would
not be for the amendment or
against it. The board felt that no
matter which side we took, we
would lose members. (The associ-
ation currently has about 70 mem-
bers.) We will make no stand what-
soever on this bill." Nims added that
the association is in a transition
period while looking for a new
executive director and were unable
to have a meeting to determine the
facts.
Should the bill pass, the credit
pokers will still be illegal but law
enforcement officers will be able to
confiscate games by definition
instead of having to observe payouts
as is the case now. Said Goudeau, " If
the bill passes we'll be right where
we are but they can take the games
on sight. However, if the bill does
not pass, the games will still be
illegal, it is just a little harder to
prove ."
Seidenfeld resigns, Jenkins
Glenn K. Seidenfeld, Jr., vice
president, secretary and general
counsel , has decided to leave Bally
Manufacturing Corporation to
pursue a new career in commercial
Glenn K. Seidente/d, }r.
12
real estate development effective
July 1, 1985.
Robert E. Mullane , president
and chairman of the board , an-
nounced that Neil E. Jenkins will be
promoted to secretary and general
counsel of Bally, July 1, 1985.
"We are extremely sorry to see
Glenn leave. He has served Bally
admirably, and we wish him the best
in his new endeavor," Mullane said.
" However, we are extremely fortu-
nate to have an attorney of Neil
Jenkins' caliber and talent already
serving the company which will
make for a smooth transition ,"
Mullane added.
Seidenfeld, who joined Bally in
1976 after associations with a major
Chicago law firm and the Securities
Exchange Commission in Washing-
ton , D.C., will remain as a consultant
pron~oted
for Bally for the next year and a half,
according to Mullane .
Jenkins joined Bally in August,
serving as associate general counsel
and assistant secretary .
•
PLAY METER. June 1 5, 1985
,