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<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>FYI<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=blue face="Book Antiqua"><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua";color:blue'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=blue face="Book Antiqua"><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua";color:blue'>Forwarded by Christine
Gray <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><b><font
size=2 color="#ad3921" face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:10.5pt;
color:#AD3921;font-weight:bold'>MOBTOWN BEAT</span></font></b></span><span
class=apple-style-span><font face=Times><span style='font-family:Times'> </span></font></span><span
class=apple-style-span><b><font size=2 color="#333333"><span style='font-size:
10.5pt;color:#333333;font-weight:bold'>| Culture and Nightlife</span></font></b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font
size=6 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:21.0pt;font-family:Georgia'>Game
Over</span></font></span><span class=apple-style-span><font face=Times><span
style='font-family:Times'> </span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on"><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 face=Geneva><span
style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Geneva'>Police</span></font></span></st1:PlaceName><span
class=apple-style-span><font size=2 face=Geneva><span style='font-size:10.5pt;
font-family:Geneva'> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Raid</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Charles</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Village</st1:PlaceName></span></font></span></st1:place><span
class=apple-style-span><font size=2 face=Geneva><span style='font-size:10.5pt;
font-family:Geneva'> Poker Game</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div style='min-height: 19px'>
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style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Times'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font
size=1 face=Geneva><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Geneva'>SUCKER BET:
A web page advertising the recently raided "Greek Game," which ran
out of a <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Charles</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Village</st1:PlaceName></st1:place> rowhouse.</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt;
margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face=Geneva><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Geneva'>By </span></font><a
href="http://www.citypaper.com/archives/browse.asp?byline=Van+Smith"><b><font
color="#801517"><span style='color:#801517;font-weight:bold'>Van Smith</span></font></b></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><b><font size=1 color="#333333"
face=Arial><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#333333;
font-weight:bold'>"I'M JUST COMPLETELY PETRIFIED NOW,"</span></font></b></span><span
class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333" face=Georgia><span
style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'> Bryan Hillman, 41,
says over the phone on April 25, six days after <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Baltimore</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">City</st1:PlaceType> police raided a <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Charles</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Village</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>
poker game where he was playing. "I'm done. No more poker. It's just lost
its appeal to me. I had only gone two times, and that night I brought exactly
$100. I had this notion that they were charity games and there were permits.
That's just my being very naive."</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>That
night Hillman was in attendance at a regular poker game held at an end-of-row <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Charles</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Village</st1:PlaceName></st1:place> home at Calvert and 31st streets
called the Greek Game. The game's organizers touted it on the internet as being
a "private, not for profit charity poker club," patronized by
"mostly college aged guys in a fraternity (in the greek system), and we
run the game in our frat house." Over the months it operated since last
fall, it advertised online for players ("we pay $100 per referral to our
club"), dealers ("looking for fit, fun, friendly and attractive
females to deal poker naked"), and a housekeeper ("only one hour each
morning").</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>The
home where the Greek Game operated, <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">3101
N. Calvert St.</st1:address></st1:Street>, is not a fraternity house, but a
rowhouse owned by a local doctor. Though some of the players belonged to nearby
fraternities associated with <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Johns</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Hopkins</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>,
the main organizer was a former professional poker dealer, well past his
college-aged years. A public-records search reveals that the Greek Game was
neither an incorporated entity nor a registered charitable organization in <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Maryland</st1:place></st1:State>. By all
appearances, the Greek Game was a standard, run-of-the-mill, fly-by-night poker
operation, where players paid a fee to play. Since poker is illegal in <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Maryland</st1:place></st1:State>, the odds were
that the Greek Game would get busted, given the very public manner in which it
was operated.</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>The
morning after the April 19 police raid, the discussion board on </span></font></span><a
href="http://www.md-poker.com/"><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2
color="#801517" face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;
color:#801517'>www.md-poker.com</span></font></span></a><span
class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333" face=Georgia><span
style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'> was abuzz about it.
"Ok, everyone raise your hand if you thought the Greek Game WOULDN'T get
raided/robbed!" one post reads. "Anyone that runs a game 3 nights a
week, promotes it publicly, and has topless dealers is asking to be
busted."</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><i><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333;
font-style:italic'>City Paper</span></font></i></span><span
class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333" face=Georgia><span
style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'> attempted to
interview 26 Greek Game players whose contact information was obtained from a
list of 242 people who played there. Many who were reached cut the conversation
short. Some had criminal records for armed robbery and other gun crimes, drug
dealing, assault, counterfeit trademarks, and theft. Many were college-aged,
but many were in their late 20s and early 30s, and some where in their 40s and
50s. Only one player on the list whom <i><span style='font-style:italic'>City
Paper</span></i> reached--Marshall Bell, the brother and former campaign manager
of former City Council president Lawrence Bell, who ran unsuccessfully for
mayor in 1999--denied playing at the Greek Game, though he admitted knowing it
had been raided. The man identified by several sources as the game's main
organizer did not respond to phone calls and an e-mail seeking comment.</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>Several
players who were reached by phone--but were not in attendance the night the
game was busted by police--did not speak highly of the game or its organizers.
"I only played there one time. I didn't like it. I just felt that they
were cheating," says Jason Rent, 27, from Bel Air. "I saw this one
guy lose like $3,000 in an hour." Another player, who attends the U.S.
Naval Academy in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Annapolis</st1:place></st1:City>
and spoke on condition of anonymity, says that "the guy who ran it was a
somewhat disgusting individual. He was telling all sorts of stories about
cheating at cards. It was a pretty shady game, not worth the drive for
us." Jordan Chiaruttini, a Pennsylvanian who played there with a friend,
says he "didn't go back because the two guys who were running the show
made us nervous. I can find other games to play in that I know aren't set. I'm
glad they got caught."</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>The
Baltimore Police Department public affairs office was unable to locate a copy
of the vice squad's report in time for this article, so Hillman's account of
the police raid was all that was available as of press time. Game players and
organizers have yet to be charged in court, so the identities of those nabbed
are not yet known publicly.</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>"At
least 25 people were playing," Hillman recalls, "and I went out back
in the courtyard to smoke. I saw two regular cars pull up, and cops get out.
Then there was this incredibly loud bang from the front of the building. All
these idiot kids ran out the back and were escorted back into the house by the
cops." Everyone present was interviewed individually by the police,
Hillman says, and they were told they would be receiving court summonses
charging them with gambling.</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>Hillman
says he was apologetic when the police interviewed him. "I was just like,
`I'm really sorry,'" he says. "And the sergeant said, `It's OK,
you're not a bad person.'"</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>Hillman
says the Greek Game appeared highly professional. "There were guys there
with stacks of chips close to $1,000--there was some big money on that
table," he says. "There were four dealers, one woman cooking food in
the kitchen, and one woman on the computer. They had a register where the money
goes, T-shirts promoting the game, business cards--all the things that make up
a legitimate business. The thing was so public, it was hard to believe it
wouldn't be legit."</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>Several
of the Greek Game players contacted for this article had heard that armed
gunmen had robbed the place last December. One, who asked not to be named, says
he was there when it happened. "It was right before the Christmas
break," the player recalls. "And I had been playing for three or four
hours when there was a commotion at the front door, and in came a dude with a
bandanna over his face and a hoodie on, holding a gun, and another guy with a
gun with a turtleneck fleece pulled up over his nose, who definitely looked
familiar--I think he had played there before. They made everybody stand up, and
the people upstairs were brought downstairs, and they took the house stash and
everybody's wallets. They said stupid stuff, like, `Don't follow us.' They were
in and out within four minutes. I'm estimating that they made off with at least
$2,000, maybe $3,000."</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>The
robbery victim says no one called the police to report the crime. "That really
sucked because that kind of shit should be reported," he says. "But
who's going to report it? No one was calling the cops, everyone was calling
their banks to cancel their credit cards. When the house reopened, they had a
security overhaul with cameras installed, players had to be referred, they took
more information about you, you had to have a driver's license." When the
game reopened, he says, the organizers paid him back in chips to make up for
the money that had been stolen by the robbers.</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>"I
probably was in there a total of 50 or 60 times," he continues, "like
two, three nights a week. I was a regular and I was up--probably about $400
overall. I had my big nights and I had my losing nights. That was my bread and
butter, dude--the Greek Game. Why go to <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Atlantic
City</st1:place></st1:City>?"</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in'><span class=apple-style-span><font size=2 color="#333333"
face=Georgia><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Georgia;color:#333333'>A
<st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Hopkins</st1:place></st1:City>
student, who played there and also asked not to have his name disclosed, sums
up the situation, given the robbery and the police raid: "The moral of the
story is to play at casinos. Everything at the Greek Game seemed fine and
trustworthy, but in the back of your mind it's shady, because it is
illegal."</span></font></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.5pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;line-height:13.5pt'><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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