(Sept. 24) -- A Detroit man has filed a lawsuit against a local casino, claiming the gaming business is at fault for "brainwashing" him and should give back more than $670,000 he's lost there since 2000, according to The Detroit News.
Italo Mario Parise, 61, is seeking redress under a seldom-used state law that he and his lawyer interpret to mean the MotorCity Casino had a duty to stop Parise after he lost big.
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Carlos Osorio, AP
Italo Mario Parise claims that the MotorCity Casino in Detroit, seen in a 2000 photo, "brainwashed" him into gambling away almost $700,000 over the past nine years. His lawsuit against the casino is based on an obscure 1827 statute.
"It's not gambling, it's brainwashing. They take money from you until it is gone," he told the News.
Gambling law experts, including legal briefs filed on behalf of the casino's parent company, maintain that the law applies to illegal casinos -- not legal ones, like MotorCity -- and that finding in Parise's favor could be a major blow to the industry.
"The death knell for the Detroit casinos," one filing described a potential Parise victory.
The law dates back to 1827, Parise's lawyer, Frank A. Cusumano, told the newspaper. The current statute dates to 1961.
The lawsuit is slated to be heard in Wayne Circuit Court on Friday, the newspaper reported. Parise said hasn't gambled since March 22.
Read the whole story from The Detroit News.
