State court sides with gambler in jackpot dispute

JACKSON, Miss. -- The Mississippi Supreme Court upheld claims by an Alabama man that he was illegally denied a jackpot at Biloxi's Grand Casino.

David Hallmark of Birmingham claimed he hit a $509,000 jackpot on an in-house progressive slot machine at Grand Casino-Biloxi in November 1997. Regulators claimed the Grand Bucks machine malfunctioned.

The Mississippi Gaming Commission ruled against Hallmark in 1998. A Harrison County jury sided with Hallmark against Grand Casino in 1999. Grand Casino appealed to the Supreme Court.

In a 5-4 decision Wednesday, the Supreme Court supported the jury's decision.

Justice Chuck Easley, writing the opinion for the court, said the casino's employees failed to follow procedure in handling a disputed jackpot and even tried to dissuade Hallmark from involving the Gaming Commission, which was his right in the dispute.

archive