Nevada has a standalone court that was set up to cater to the specific needs of the gambling industry. The move to set up this special court was championed by Judge Cheryl Moss who is in the limelight yet again. This time around, the judge is proposing the establishment of a similar court in the state of New Jersey where gambling related disputes will be handled.
At the time of setting up the gambling court of Nevada, the concept was new and the delay experienced in the process was expected. It took 10 years from the time when the process began to when the court was finally established.
Although judge Moss is currently retired, that does not stop her from pushing for a separate court system for gambling; the current proposal targets New Jersey and other newer jurisdictions where gambling has recently been regulated. Her experience in the court system must have inspired her to propose a separate court for gambling and legislators wishing to have this implemented are better off working with her.
There is currently an operational introduction legislation that requires defendants who are arraigned in court to first undergo treatment for up to 36 months if they qualify under the specifications of the project. This initial phase of prosecution of gambling related cases is identical to what happens under the dedicated Nevada program. If the bill were to be presented before the assembly in New Jersey, the directive given would need to be replicated individually in the Central, South and North.
What we cover
The Nevada gambling court system
Before she went into retirement, Moss was actively involved in the Nevada court system. She was presiding judge in many cases that found their way to the Gambling Treatment Diversion Court (GTDC); a first in Nevada. In a process that seeks to explore all scenarios in the gaming industry, several defendants have been presented with a new lease of life.
This would not have been possible in a regular court that does not take into account the various aspects of gambling. Many people for instance commit crimes in an effort to propagate their betting habits. It must be understood by the court that gambling can deteriorate into an addiction and without addressing the habit first, it will be almost impossible to correct the habit through the criminal penal system.
For an individual that has gone through the correctional GTDC program successfully as part of their court case hearing, the felony that led them to be convicted is thrown out or suspended. This grants the defendant a clean slate on which they can start life afresh.
According to Judge Moss, this unique way of prosecuting gambling-inspired crime is an admittance that crime must be inspired by some primary force at all times. Some people obviously commit criminal offenses for the sake of it, but even that must be motivated by something. Giving a reformed gambling addict a new breath of life is allowing them to lead a normal life. She advocates for clearing the records of the accused so that they may get a chance at a career and even a job.
During her stint in the GTDC court in Nevada, Moss met with the participants of the program once every two weeks. The participants were taken through mandatory testing for drugs levels in their blood, there was follow up on their medication regime, the attendance of the participants in Gamblers Anonymous (GA), the working budget for the individual participant, and a report of their location/movements.
With some of the defendants facing up to 10 year prison sentences when they joined her program, Ross is optimistic that they are better off with GTDC than they are in a correctional facility. All it took for them to turn around their lives was guidance and supervision during their recovery process. The aim of the program was to ultimately dissociate crime from gambling which was achieved to a great extent.
After close to 10 years chasing the setting up of the first gambling dedicated court in Nevada, Moss was to hear the first gambling related cases in Nevada in November 2018. In areas that have tried to copy and paste the Nevada gambling court model, the structure and procedure for correction is drawn from the existing law as used in Nevada.
A bunch of new products and trends have emerged and the input of the New Jersey Gambling Court initiative has therefore been instrumental in drafting the new legislation. Honestly speaking, the current draft of the NJ law is far much better than what was passed in Nevada 3 years ago. Moss cites online betting and sports betting as new models of the gambling scene that were non-existent previously but now must be taken into consideration during court proceedings.
Emerging gambling opportunities will inevitably lead to the rise in the number of people who fall victim to gambling. Moss predicts that a large number of criminal gamblers are people who have never been to a courtroom before leave alone have a prior record of criminal engagement.
Final Thoughts
Every good deed is born out of an inspiration; and for Moss, this came from the mother. When she was appointed to be a judge in 2001, her mother, Dr. Rena M. Nora, was by then the head of the psychiatric department of the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Las Vegas. As a medical doctor, the mother had made a connection between mental illness and gambling as a habit.
At the time of her mother, Moss had been witness to her advocacy for the rights of those who were battling with gambling addiction. She decided to take on this cause and would use her position and influence to make this legally possible. We can all agree that gambling, being as old as the world itself, will never go out of fashion. It is exciting and thrilling to say the least but for the sake of those who are caught up in disordered betting; this new court system is the only hope at leading a near-normal life.
