Bally says board erred in awarding slot jackpot

RENO - Slot machine maker Bally Gaming Inc. says in court papers that state gaming officials erred in ruling that a California woman should be paid $112,600 for what she thought was a jackpot at a Reno casino.

Sylvia Gutierrez, 75, of San Ramon, Calif., is preparing a formal response to Bally's opening court brief in her effort to get the money after the bottom portion of the jackpot symbols stopped along the payline on her Thrillions-Betty Boop game last year.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board later ruled that Gutierrez should be paid, even though Bally contended that her symbols were not centered on the payline of her game played Sept. 30 at the Sands Regency Casino and Hotel.

Bally said the payline should have run higher up on the symbols, through the Betty Boop cartoon character instead of through the ''Thrillions'' word the character sits on, as happened in Gutierrezs case.

Bally, not the Sands, would be responsible for payment since the game is part of Bally's Thrillions system that links slot machines statewide to create large jackpots.

''The alignment Mrs. Gutierrez hit did not comply with the express requirements of the offer presented by the machine,'' Bally wrote. ''Specifically, the express requirement that symbols be centered on the payline was not fulfilled. As a matter of law, therefore, Mrs. Gutierrez did not win the jackpot.''

Gutierrez now must respond to Bally's brief, after which Bally will be allowed to respond to Gutierrez.

After that, Washoe District Judge Jim Hardesty would review the briefs and evidence and decide whether to affirm the Gaming Control Board decision, remand the case for further proceedings or reverse the decision.

''Even leaving aside the fact that Mrs. Gutierrez did not hit the winning alignment, the record repeatedly confirms the complete absence of any indicia of a jackpot: no lights, no music, no lockup, no signal to the central computer, nothing,'' Bally adds.

Also in defense of its position, Bally cited the Nevada Supreme Courts recent ruling that denied payment of a $1.8-million jackpot to Cengiz Sengel of San Jose, Calif. His International Game Technology slot machine malfunctioned and the reels were suddenly halted with the winning symbols unevenly touching the payline of his Reno slot machine.