Clinton Portis' Casino Debt Case To Go To Trial In DecemberAtlantic City's Borgata Casino Argues Debt Shouldn't Be Discharged |
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Former NFL star Clinton Portis and Atlantic City’s largest brick-and-mortar casino are scheduled to go to trial in December over gambling debt he racked up in 2011, according to court documents filed Monday.
The Borgata casino says that Portis owes it $170,000 from the gambling sessions. Portis filed for bankruptcy in 2015, but the casino wants the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Florida in Gainesville to rule that the debt isn’t eligible for discharge.
Portis made more than $43 million during his NFL career that ended about five years ago, but his finances deteriorated during retirement. The 35-year-old said he was scammed by financial advisers. According to a June article from the L.A. Times, Portis lives in a two-bedroom apartment in Virginia and makes money from broadcasting work and appearances.
When Portis declared for bankruptcy two years ago, he only had $150 in his bank account and owed a seven-figure sum to creditors, which includes the gambling debt.
According to Borgata’s February 2016 complaint against the former running back, the debt can’t be discharged because it was the “result of the fraudulent conduct and materially false representations” made by Portis during his trips to the property.
“The defendant incurred the debt in question through the use of written statements which were knowingly materially false and upon which Borgata reasonably relied in connection with the redemption of the markers in question, providing defendant with…$170,000 in cash or gaming chips. The debtor’s issuance of a bad check is a false pretense because such checks are made under the express and implied representation that it will be honored.”
The casino said the bad checks were a “willful and malicious injury to Borgata.”
Borgata wants the $170,000, plus interest and attorney’s fees.
The case is set for a one-day trial on Dec. 6, though it could still be settled beforehand.
Borgata is currently involved with another high-profile case that seeks to recover money from a gambler. Poker legend Phil Ivey was ordered by a court late last year to pay the casino $10.1 million from controversial baccarat sessions in 2012. Borgata is also seeking judgement against the card manufacturer. The casino paid Ivey his winnings but later realized he edge-sorted.
Atlantic City’s casino industry is still slowly recovering from a massive decline in gambling revenue over the last 10 years. In 2016, gaming win inched up for the first time since 2006, but it was just a 1.5 percent compared to 2015. Through August of this year, the casinos won $1.8 billion from gamblers, up two percent year-over-year.
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