The following weekend, a patron of Rivers Casino was arrested for reportedly leaving a 7-year-old child in a parked car while going inside the casino.
According to the report, John Elliott, a 44-year-old resident of Schiller Park, was accused by officers of endangering the life or health of a child. The child did not show any signs of injury.
The police were alerted to the incident when the child exited the car and approached security guards after being left alone for approximately 20 minutes, informing them that he had been left inside the vehicle.
Elliott allegedly left the child in the car around 7:30 p.m., and regional police were notified of the incident by 8:00 p.m.
The incident occurred on a day when the temperature in Des Plaines, where Rivers Casino is situated, was approximately 70 degrees. It was fortunate that it was not any warmer, as the temperature plays a crucial role in situations like this.
If Elliott is convicted, he may face a prison sentence of two to five years and a fine of $25,000. He was detained by Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) agents as he tried to exit the casino.
Similar to this, Rivers Casino has permanently barred customers.
In 2018, a woman abandoned her 10-year-old child in a parked car outside the entrance of Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh while she played inside.
During that time, a representative from Rivers stated:
Although we cannot prevent parents from making irresponsible choices, we are committed to preventing similar incidents from occurring at Rivers. Signs throughout the casino clearly state that visitors must be 21 or older, and there are warnings against leaving children unattended. The individual responsible for this incident has been permanently banned from the casino.
A different kind of problematic playing
When discussing problem gamblers, we are referring to individuals who gamble with money they cannot afford to lose.
In this instance, we do not provide much detail about the individual’s activities within the game. Nevertheless, it is clearly disturbing to leave a child unsupervised in a parking lot while engaging in gambling. Undoubtedly, leaving a child unattended for any reason is concerning behavior.
Regrettably, this is not the first instance of something similar happening.
In fact, it is not uncommon – earlier this year, a baby in Nevada had to be taken to the hospital in a similar situation. Additionally, the temperature in Las Vegas was significantly higher than in Des Plaines.
Illinois offers support for individuals struggling with gambling addiction through resources such as the state’s gambling helpline at 1-800-GAMBLE. Additionally, individuals can seek assistance by texting ILGAMB to 53342.
Moreover, the Illinois Department of Human Services advises individuals with gambling problems to seek assistance at weknowthefeeling.org.
