Harrah’s to pay fine for incident at Pennsylvania racino

Harrah’s Entertainment will pay Pennsylvania gaming regulators a $45,000 fine for “failing to deal with a disruptive patron in a manner consistent” with the company’s policies, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board announced this morning.

The fine stems from an August 2008 incident at Harrah’s Chester Casino and Racetrack. Details of the incident were not identified in the regulators’ announcement.

Gaming regulators said Harrah’s security and staff created a situation “wherein the patron was susceptible to physical injury and personal embarrassment” because internal controls in dealing with disruptive patrons were not followed.

Casino security personnel involved in the incident were terminated.

Harrah’s also agreed to update the property’s surveillance system to a digital format from its current analog VHS system.

The fine comes as the racino has experienced eight consecutive months of declining revenues through September.

The property generated $23.6 million in revenue last month, a 3.3 percent decline from September 2008.