A federal court has handed Bally's Atlantic City and slot machine manufacturer IGT 30 days to present proof as to why a $1,277,954.35 prize that was purportedly won in February 2024 was not paid out.
Roney Beal, the plaintiff, 73, of Shamong Township, New Jersey, asserts that she and her husband, Richard Beal, were regular patrons of Bally's Atlantic City. Beal claims in her federal complaint against the Boardwalk resort that on the weekend of February 25, 2024, she was invited to Bally's.
Beal claims she scooped the jackpot while playing a Wheel of Fortune wide-area progressive slot machine on that Sunday. However, a Bally's employee told Beal that she hadn't won because the machine had broken down when a slot attendant showed up.
The Beals then filed lawsuits against Bally's and IGT, the latter of which is the gaming company that makes the slot machine that manages the rewards from the progressive.
Proceeding with the Case
In July 2024, Beal's complaint—which had been initially brought in state court—was transferred to the federal district court in New Jersey. After the case dragged on for almost a year, Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Pascal issued her decision this week.
Bally's request to "administratively terminate" the plaintiff's complaint was approved by Pascal. Nonetheless, the decision did not "constitute a dismissal under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure," but it did give Bally and IGT 30 days to provide an update on the NJDGE inquiry.
The NJDGE's investigation into the event "remains ongoing," according to Bally's.
The Wheel of Fortune machine in issue reportedly had a "Reel Tilt" on the winning spin, according to Bally's and IGT. When a physical reel does not produce the result that the machine's internal random number generator, or RNG, anticipated, it is referred to as a reel tilt.
All plays and payouts are nullified by such problems. Beal claims that until she won the lottery, the machine was operating without any issues and never showed an error message or "Reel Tilt" alert.
"Prior to the spin in question, the machine operated normally and did not have any malfunctions, computer glitches, or tilts and had no problem accepting Plaintiff’s money,” Beal’s attorneys wrote in her complaint. “After hitting the jackpot, Plaintiff pushed the service button to get the assistance of Bally’s employees and, for the first time, a ‘REEL TILT’ message appeared at the bottom of the screen.”
Bally's and the DGE, according to Beal and her lawyers, have "failed to supply any information" on the malfunction.
The Casino Has the Best Chances
This is by no means the first instance of a casino refusing to pay out for a slot machine win because of a malfunction. The majority of lawsuits contesting slot machine faults are won by the casinos.
According to the New Jersey Casino Control Act, all Atlantic City slot machines must notify players of technological issues that could render plays and payouts void.
“Each slot machine shall include conspicuous language which states that a malfunction voids all pays,” the state gaming law reads.
A notorious instance of a slot machine malfunction nullifying a win happened at Resorts World New York City in August 2016. A woman from New York believed she had won a jackpot of about $43 million while playing at the Queens racino.
But the video lottery machine, which could pay out up to $6,500, had broken down. Instead, she received a complimentary steak meal. IGT was also the manufacturer of the video lottery terminal.