Father and son charged with operating illegal poker hall

[Midnight Rose]

-And yet again, from pokerlistings.com

Father and son charged with operating illegal poker hall

10:59 AM, Wednesday, May 17, 2006
by Lianne Elias

A Maryland cop and his father were found guilty last week of operating an illegal poker hall in Glen Burnie, Maryland. Howard County police officer Michael "Tykie" Thorn, 40, and his father, Gary Allen Thorn Sr., 64, were sentenced to a year of unsupervised probation.

According to the Baltimore Sun, Anne Arundel County police found hundreds of customized poker chips emblazoned with Thorn Jr.'s nickname "Tykie" when the establishment was raided on April 12, 2006. Officers also seized $2,345 from Thorn Jr., who was there with his father when police arrived.

Defense attorneys argued that the gambling hall was a place where people could learn the ropes of Texas Hold'em without having to wager money, and called James Robert Ozman to the stand to testify in defense of the accused.

Ozman, a frequent player at the poker hall who was present during the bust, originally said, "The game is not for money, it is for fun," and assured the court that the club was a place of learning. "It was just kind of instructional," he said.

However, after an assistant state attorney forced Ozman to read aloud from a police questionnaire he filled out immediately following the raid, in which he admitted to having won or lost $200-$300 at the club, Ozman said, "I don't want to lie anymore. We were playing a $5 to $10 poker game. I don't think that's the biggest crime in the world."

Gary Thorn Sr. was found guilty of two misdemeanor charges and his son was found guilty of five. District Judge Thomas J. Pryal sentenced Thorn Sr. to 16 hours of community service and ordered him to pay a $250 fine. Michael Thorn was sentenced to 40 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $500 fine.

Michael Thorn, a 19-year veteran of the Howard police force, was suspended without pay for 30 days by the Howard Police Department. His lawyer said he will be allowed to retire with full pension and benefits in February and will be on unpaid leave until then.

[ahopen78]

I may or may not have worked for this guy as a dealer back when I was in college:

http://www.rnews.com/print.cfm?id=24857
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/...0319/1002/NEWS
http://www.newswatch50.com/news/stat...1-491b88ccd1f7


article before the bust during the glory days:
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/...ent_1704.shtml
http://www.rnews.com/Story_2004.cfm?...=9&category=10

[Nexttime]

Kind of old new around my area. Played there a few times. Wasn't there for the bust. I stopped going for reasons that I won't get into on this forum.

[Poboy]

They were lucky they ran it in Anne Arundel. Prince George's county cops probably would've shot one of them.

[ahopen78]

Originally Posted by Nexttime

Kind of old new around my area. Played there a few times. Wasn't there for the bust. I stopped going for reasons that I won't get into on this forum.

So you know Jimmy the Bug?
I am from roch myself...

and like I said, I may or may not have worked for him.

[smoore]

Outlaw sez:

HAHA PIG!

At least the're letting him retire. As much as I hate cops I wouldn't want to see a guy get his pension stripped because of a poker game.

[ebae]

Maybe if the Howard County cop hosted the games in Ho. Co.,...nevermind...not the first bust in MD....

[rolandshoffinc]

What in the world is unsupervised probation?
How is that different from everyday life?
I think everyone is on unsupervised probation!

[smoore]

Originally Posted by rolandshoffinc

What in the world is unsupervised probation?
How is that different from everyday life?
I think everyone is on unsupervised probation!

haha, good point. Basically, stay out of trouble or you'll be held accountable for your past crimes until it expires. Some of my life has been under this cloud, it doesn't really affect a guy.

[smoore]

bahahahaha! silly pigs, your neg rep harms no one!

Thing is, when some 60 iq Bull or corrupt Pig calls me "scooter trash" or "a waste" I'm just supposed to take it. Guess what? I don't have to take it on the internet! You can't actually tazer me while in cuffs, then parade me in the front door so everyone can see I pissed myself. You can't threaten to shoot me if I don't toe your line and show me the gun you're going to plant on my body. I don't have to put up with your abuse of authority. I'm FREE here.

Cops are corrupt and I'm not afraid to point it out. I'm sure this guy was a "good cop" and he "wouldn't do stuff like that". B-freakin'-S. He'd be the first. He got caught breaking the law and now I get to laugh about it. Go extort a pimp or something.

As a matter of fact, I *would* like to fight, thank you.