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Ex-dealer sues over exposure to smoke 

A dealer who spent two decades at Caesars Palace has sued the Strip resort and parent company Harrah's Entertainment in federal court claiming that exposure to secondhand smoke forced her to quit her casino job.

In a lawsuit that attorneys are seeking to have certified as a class action case, former blackjack dealer Tomo Stephens claimed Caesars Palace isn't doing enough to protect its workers from the dangers of secondhand smoke.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, contends Caesars Palace, since being acquired by Harrah's in 2005, has removed nonsmoking gaming areas from the casino floor, forbids employees from designating certain gaming tables as smoke-free and encourages smoking among its customers.

"The point of this lawsuit is not to ban smoking in casinos," said Jay Edelson, a Chicago-based attorney who filed the action. "The real goal is to change what they're doing. At least offer areas that are nonsmoking where employees can circle in and out. We are not trying to stop smokers from gambling."ional Institute of Occupational Safety and Health that assessed the levels of second-hand smoke in three casinos.

The study found that chemicals associated with second-hand smoke exist both on casino floors and in the bloodstreams of casino employees.

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TOMO STEPHENS v. HARRAH’S ENTERTAINMENT, INC. a Delaware corporation d/b/a CAESAR’S PALACE HOTEL AND CASINO (PDF) 

54. The Defendant has breached this duty by failing to take reasonable precautions to protect its employees from exposure to second-hand smoke, a recognized hazard.

55. Specifically, the Defendant has breached this duty in the following ways:

a. failing to designate certain sections of the gaming area as smoke-free;

b. failing to restrict the times in which smoking is permitted in the gaming area;

c. failing to physically separate certain parts of the gaming area and designating them as smoke-free;

d. failing to install effective air filtration/purification systems which act to minimize the amount of second-hand smoke in the air;

e. failing to monitor the health and welfare of its employees who are exposed to second-hand smoke, and failing to take steps to assist those adversely affected by second-hand smoke; and

f. failing to take any other necessary steps to mitigate the dangers posed by second-hand smoke.

56. As an actual and proximate result of Defendant’s breach, Plaintiff, and other members of the class have suffered, and continue to suffer damages.

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Court grant the following relief:

a. Enter an order requiring the Defendant to take reasonable measures to protect its employees from second-hand smoke;

b. Enter an order requiring the Defendant to make informational pamphlets detailing the dangers of second-hand smoke available at Defendant HARRAH’S Health and Wellness Center;

c. Enter an order awarding Plaintiff and the class costs and reasonable attorney’s fees associated with the prosecution of this action;

d. Award any and all further relief provided by law that this Court deems equitable and just.

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• Longtime dealer sues Caesars over second-hand smoke  

A proposed class-action lawsuit was filed in Las Vegas Wednesday against Harrah's Entertainment Inc. and Caesars Palace, alleging Caesars isn't doing enough to protect casino workers from second-hand tobacco smoke.

The lead plaintiff is Tomo Stephens, who says she was a blackjack dealer for about 20 years at Harrah's-owned Caesars on the Las Vegas Strip and quit her job June 16 on the advice of her doctor.

The federal lawsuit says pre-cancerous cells were found in her stomach and that over the years she was exposed to second-hand smoke causing irritation to her eyes, coughing, sore throat, shortness of breath, dizziness, wheezing or tightness in the chest, headache, nausea and ingestion of cancer-causing chemicals and toxins.

The lawsuit seeks to represent as a class all former, current and future Caesars employees exposed to unsafe levels of second-hand smoke.

The lawsuit alleges that while Las Vegas competitors such as the Bellagio and Palazzo have taken significant steps to deal with second-hand smoke, about all that Caesars has done is make some of its poker rooms smoke-free.

"Despite overwhelming scientific evidence, Caesars Palace has failed to protect the health and welfare of many of its employees who must perform their jobs while breathing in second-hand smoke," the suit charges.

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• Skolnick to allow tobacco during Indian ritual  

Director of Corrections Howard Skolnik told the Nevada Indian Commission Wednesday he will make an exception to the prison system's new tobacco ban for American Indian religious ceremonies.

Those ceremonies, which conclude with participants smoking a ceremonial pipe, will be allowed to have the limited amount of tobacco needed to share the pipe.

Skolnik said he is aware that will cause some inmates to suddenly develop an interest in sweat lodge ceremonies just to get access to tobacco.

He banned tobacco products from the prison system, for inmates and staff, effective July 1.

“You'll have 100 inmates turn out for the sweat lodge because they can use tobacco there,” he said.

And he said he anticipates that other religious groups in the prison system will want to add a sweat lodge ceremony to their practices.

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New cigar bar gives smokers another option 

When Nevada passed a law banning smoking in places that serve food, Susan and Jeff Melvin discovered it created a niche for people looking for a smoking option.

The Melvins opened Jimmy G's Cigar Bar in downtown Carson City on June 5. While they don't serve food, the option for patrons to light up is good for business.

“The nice thing is, people can choose,” Susan Melvin said. “If they want to go somewhere where there is no smoking, they can, or where people can smoke, they can.”

Melvin said customers can order lunch or dinner from nearby Garibaldi's or Kim Lee Sushi and have it delivered.

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Washoe health care facilities to go smoke-free  

Officials of Northern Nevada's three major health care providers Thursday announced they will make their facilities smoke and tobacco free, eliminating designated smoking areas.

Renown Regional, Northern Nevada and Saint Mary's Regional medical centers each will set their own schedule to erase smoking, the largest cause of poor health nationally.

"As health care providers, we have to balance teaching patients not to smoke, as well as set an example for them by helping make our campuses tobacco free," said Mark Crawford, CEO of NNMC.

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Nevada State Prison system goes tobacco free July 1 

July 1.

On that date, the entire system will become tobacco free.

Director of Corrections Howard Skolnik said the ban will apply not only to inmates but his staff as well. He said not even the administrative grounds at Stewart are exempt from the ban.

“We informed the inmates and staff a year ago,” he said. “We're not the first to do this. I have not spoken to any department that has had any serious problems.”

Skolnik said the problems at other prison systems have been greater for the staff than the inmates.

“They still have ready access. All they have to do is stop at a 7-Eleven,” he said. “But the inmates will be very lucky to get a very expensive cigarette.”

Skolnik said for new inmates, it will be easier since most of them are already off cigarettes.

“The vast majority of our inmates come to us tobacco free because both Clark and Washoe county ban smoking products,” he said. “So what we're doing is re-addicting them.”

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Smoking ban eased  

A plan to roll back part of a voter-approved smoking ban and exempt tobacco trade conventions from the prohibition became law on Tuesday without Gov. Jim Gibbons' signature.

When Gibbons sent AB309 to the secretary of state's office, making it part of Nevada law even though he didn't sign the measure, it completed his review of about 530 bills sent to him by lawmakers. While most were signed, he vetoed 48 of the bills and was overridden 25 times by lawmakers.

The tobacco trade show exemption had been amended into AB309, which deals with the crime of stalking, and was approved a week ago on the final day of the 2009 legislative session.

The original bill, SB372, would have softened the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act, passed by voters in 2006, by fine-tuning just where smoking should be prohibited. Lobbyists wanted to allow smoking in bars that serve food as long as minors are restricted from entry, but that bill died in the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

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Smoking bill still alive in new form 

A last-minute maneuver to revive part of an indoor smoking bill continued on Monday, the final day of the 2009 Nevada legislature.

The plan, to roll back a voter-approved smoking ban only at tobacco trade conventions, was suggested as an amendment to AB309, which deals with the crime of stalking, earlier this week.

“I’ve never had a bill that was a battle ground before, at least not this late in the session,” said Assemblywoman Ellen Koivisto, D-Las Vegas, sponsor of AB309. “I brought that bill because of a woman in my district who was killed by a stalker. The stalking bill is so important.”

Koivisto said some AB309 sponsors in the Assembly wanted their names off the bill if the smoking provisions remained, and warned that the bill would lose their votes if the provisions were not removed.

But others in the Senate warned Koivisto that the bill wouldn’t pass out of that house unless the tobacco convention language was added back in. Koivisto said the bill was being redrafted to include the tobacco convention language.

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'SINE DIE': Legislature finishes quietly  

A last-minute maneuver to revive part of an indoor smoking bill succeeded late Monday. The plan to roll back a voter-approved smoking ban so that tobacco trade conventions are exempted was amended into AB309, which deals with the crime of stalking. The change was approved by the Assembly and the Senate and now goes to Gov. Jim Gibbons for final approval.

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LAST SESSION: What they did  

SMOKING BAN REVISION: Legislators rejected a bill sought by tavern owners to change the 2006 voter-approved law that prohibits smoking in restaurants, bars that serve food, supermarkets and most other public places. Tavern owners had wanted legislators to allow smoking in bars that served food as long as people under age 21 were excluded from the premises

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Indoor smoking bill lives 

-A plan to roll back a voter-approved ban on smoking in public places died weeks ago in the Nevada Legislature, but lobbyists for the gambling and tourism industries are using the last few days of the 2009 session to try to bring it back to life.

The original bill, SB372 would have softened the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act, passed by voters in 2006, by fine-tuning just where smoking should be prohibited. Lobbyists wanted to allow smoking in bars that serve food as long as minors are restricted from entry, but the bill died when it failed to pass out of the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

That didn't stop lobbyists from reviving part of the plan on Saturday to allow smoking at tobacco trade conventions. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority sought the change because some groups with tobacco industry ties canceled Nevada conventions after the ban too effect.

The amendment was suggested for AB309, with deals with the crime of stalking.

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• Smoking law change supported 

Gambling and tourism industry lobbyists succeeded Sunday in 11th-hour efforts to get the Nevada Assembly to endorse a partial rollback of a voter-approved ban on smoking in public places.

On a voice vote, the Assembly agreed to a conference committee plan to allow for smoking at some trade conventions. The plan is being grafted onto AB309, which deals with the crime of stalking.

Assembly Judiciary Committee Chairman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, said the amendment sought by the lobbyists seemed "touchy relative to germaneness" because AB309 is an anti-stalking bill but was found to be OK by the lawmakers' legal counsel.

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Lobbyists revive part of Indoor smoking bill  

A plan to roll back a voter-approved ban on smoking in public places died weeks ago in the Nevada Legislature, but lobbyists for the gambling and tourism industries are using the last few days of the 2009 session to try to bring it back to life.

The original bill, SB372 would have softened the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act, passed by voters in 2006, by fine-tuning just where smoking should be prohibited. Lobbyists wanted to allow smoking in bars that serve food as long as minors are restricted from entry, but the bill died when it failed to pass out of the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

That didn't stop lobbyists from reviving part of the plan on Saturday to allow smoking at tobacco trade conventions. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority sought the change because some groups with tobacco industry ties canceled Nevada conventions after the ban too effect.

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LETTER: Smoking in eateries is selfish and rude 

Can someone please tell me why smokers think they should be allowed to light up in restaurants and ruin the dining pleasure of nonsmokers? Nonsmoking sections don’t matter — smoke would still be in the environment.

How can a smoker spend five hours on a plane without a cigarette but then not want to let diners enjoy their meals for an hour? When are smokers going to accept that smoking is dangerous? If smokers want to kill themselves, they should please do it in the privacy of their own homes.

I have lived in Florida and California and was thrilled when smoking was banned in restaurants there and later in Nevada, too. I enjoy living in Las Vegas and hope that someday this state will come to its senses and ban smoking in all public places, period.

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