Workers Worried About Jobs

Abraham Azain 
January 10, 1997 
Abraham J. Azain Of Lee Park Towers, Hanover Township, Died Friday At The 
Wilkes-barre General Hospital.

Sunday, January 12, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A 





Don't bet on punishment in poker raids &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Now that a new round of video poker raids is under way, what dire
consequence awaits alleged crooks after state cops haul video poker machines
from their businesses? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; If they're lucky, the commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police will
stop by for lunch and handshakes all aroundIt happened to well-known
restaurateur Jerry Bonner in the aftermath of the 1994 state police gambling
raid on the Bear Creek restaurant that carries his name. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Back then, state police hauled two video poker machines from the bar and
restaurant on Route 115, confiscated $2,218 in cash, charged a barmaid with
making an illegal payoff and slapped Bonner with three separate gambling
offenses. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The barmaid admitted making the illegal payoff and prosecutors accepted her
into a first-offender's program. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bonner hired a great lawyer. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Plains Township District Justice Diana Malast says she dismissed all
charges against Bonner because state police didn't prove Bonner owned the
restaurant. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 State police sizzled and refiled the charges. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The next magistrate tossed the charges as well. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bonner continued working at the restaurant, where he's officially listed as
an employee of the corporation that technically owns the enterprise. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Did the surrounding publicity about the bust hurt his business? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Not enough to keep state police Commissioner Paul Evanko from stopping by
"Jerry Bonner's Carriage Stop Inn" for lunch last November to observe the 30th
anniversary of the founding of the Crime Clinic of Greater Wyoming Valley,
whose membership takes in a wide array of area law enforcement officers --
including FBI agents -- as well as civilian law and order advocates. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Crime Clinic participants have continued to hold monthly meetings at
Bonner's for more than a decade. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The clincher is that last week's raid snagged a poker machine in the
Nanticoke bowling alley owned by newly elected Crime Clinic President George
Ellis. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ellis, who serves as the executive director of the Nanticoke Chamber of
Commerce and director of the Luzerne County Industrial Development Authority,
shrugs off the gambling strike. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "My son, George, operates the bowling alley. I just own the place," Ellis
said Thursday. "He makes all the arrangements with the guys he gets the
machines from. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Maybe some good will come of this," Ellis said, alluding to the
possibility of legalized gambling. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Maybe indeed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Actually, Bonner and his lawyer are expected in a Luzerne County courtroom
Monday to demand that state police return the $2,218 they seized when they
busted the Carriage Stop. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bonner, a former member of the Democratic State Committee who serves on the
Luzerne County Board of Assistance, a state-related agency charged with
handling public welfare issues, has a good shot at pulling a winning hand. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As for Commissioner Evanko, he had no idea that his people had busted the
Carriage Stop when he agreed to speak to the Crime Clinic, said a state police
spokesman in Harrisburg. Had he known, he might have passed on the invitation,
the spokesman said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Good thinking, commish. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Conscientious cops and other credible Crime Clinic members should likewise
pass on meeting at the Carriage Stop. If nothing else, the barmaid there
admitted to making illegal video poker machine payoffs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 While they're at it, our local "crime clinicians" might want to think about
nominating a new president. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ellis might not be a sure thing. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bonner, by the way, isn't expected to ask state police to return his poker
machines. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We're OK, we got another one here," said the guy who answered the phone
Friday at "Jerry Bonner's Carriage Stop Inn." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Steve Corbett's column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. E-mail Corbett
at stevec@abc.com &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Don't Bet On Punishment In Poker Raids 
Now That A New Round Of Video Poker Raids Is Under Way, What Dire Consequence 
Awaits Alleged Crooks After State Cops Haul Video Poker Machines From Their 
Businesses? 
If They're Lucky, The Commissioner Of The Pennsylvania State Police Will Stop 
By For Lunch And Handshakes All Around.