Gold Coast Casino Roulette Accident Results in Lawsuit

The Gold Coast casino hotel in Las Vegas, owned by Boyd Gaming, is facing a lawsuit from a visitor who was struck in the eye by a rogue roulette ball.

Dalease Brown, of Clark County, Nevada, was seriously injured as a result of the incident which occurred on October 28, 2021. Brown has recently filed a lawsuit in Clark County’s eighth judicial district court, seeking damages for the injuries sustained.

The Incident and Allegations

Brown alleges that the dealer rolled the roulette marble “in a negligent and unsafe speed/manner,” causing it to ricochet from the wheel and strike her in the eye.

“The marble ball ricocheted from the roulette wheel and violently struck Plaintiff in her left eye at a high rate of speed, severely injuring Plaintiff,” the complaint says.

Her injuries were “severe, painful, and permanent,” according to the lawsuit, which was obtained by The Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The complaint is seeking $15,000 in damages. Neither Gold Coast casino or its operator Boyd Gaming have commented on the issue as of yet.

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Casino Roulette Accidents

Interestingly, this is not the only time a U.S. casino visitor has been hit in the eye with a rogue roulette ball in the past decade.

In 2015, Leander Stocks sued the Cordish Companies, owners of the Maryland Live casino, after being hit in the eye with a rogue roulette ball two years prior. Stocks sought $300K in the suit, which claimed negligence on the part of the croupier and battery. A casino security guard allegedly administered eyedrops “without warning or consent,” that lawsuit said.

In another case from 2012, Hung Nguyen sued Harrah’s New Orleans Casino for a similar injury, though the outcome of that lawsuit is not readily available online.

Boyd Gaming’s Safety History

It is also far from the first time Boyd Gaming has been sued over accidents and other safety concerns at its Nevada casino venues.

The company is also being sued by the widow of a man who died in August 2021, from injuries sustained after falling and getting trapped in an escalator walkway at the Las Vegas Suncoast Hotel and Casino.

In another case from 2017, a 63-year-old visitor from Virginia, Paul Neiswander, died after falling during an escalator malfunction at Las Vegas’ The Orleans, also owned by Boyd. The family sued for wrongful death, with the outcome of the suit never made public.

Boyd was also fined $150,000 by Nevada health and safety regulators in 2007. The company was found to have lax procedures in place after two maintenance workers died from toxic fumes in a manhole while on the job at The Orleans.

While it is fair to say that even with adequate precautions, the famous Las Vegas resort casinos will have the occasional accident with millions of visitors coming to Sin City every day. However, this latest lawsuit over a rogue roulette ball is still not a good look for Boyd.