Latest Gaming Board Moves Against Emerald a Waste of Time

 Finally, a voice of reason amid the rhetoric surrounding Emerald Casino.

 Greg Hinz recommends that all the parties come together and solve the protracted court battle, because Illinois taxpayers are losing a million dollars a day while the 10th gaming license is not in use ("Time to case in," Nov. 28.).  In fact, Emerald Casino has long supported a Bankruptcy Court compromise that would ensure that the state do what is right for everyone involved.

 Unfounded fears that a casino in Rosemont would result in organized crime infiltrating casino dealings led Judge Abner Mikva to recommend stripping Emerald Casino of its license.  The previous Illinois Gaming Board and Emerald's owners had agreed to sell this license in bankruptcy through an auction process, in which the Gaming board itself selected the new holder of the license, a move approved even by state Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

 Instead, backed by an anti-Rosemont political agenda, the Gaming Board's revocation hearings yielded a foregone conclusion that does not allow Emerald to sell its license and get it working again for Illinois taxpayers.  The administrative judge's recommendation means that Emerald Casino and the Gaming Board will continue a fight in a courtroom battle that could take years as it weaves its way through the judicial process.