I’m not a legal expert, but I’m guessing it might be difficult to place a gag order on outdoor billboards.
Perhaps one day we’ll find out.
The billboards in question shout an invitation to collect a $1 million reward for information that proves longtime Strip high-roller Dwight Manley was involuntarily drugged during a December 2021 gambling foray in Las Vegas at MGM Grand’s exclusive Mansion high-limit gaming salon.
In a related news release, Manley stated, “Any tip is worth looking at. Someone knows who did this and we want to keep it from happening again. I could have died.”
The billboard asks the stinging question, “WHO DRUGGED A PLAYER’S DRINK AT MGM MANSION BAR DECEMBER 10, 2021?” Included is the address of an associated website, www.1millionreward.com.
According to the website, Manley “claims that he was involuntarily drugged with ketamine while he was playing blackjack in the high-limit area of the MGM Grand in December 2021 and that he suffered the loss of millions of dollars while under the influence of that drug.” The site also includes a 15-paragraph list of terms and conditions.
Manley has hired De Becker Investigations, which is currently soliciting information in connection with the case.
A multimillionaire real-estate developer and rare-coin collector who was also the agent and manager for colorful NBA star Dennis Rodman, Manley claims in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas that the powerful tranquilizer ketamine was slipped into one of the several cocktails he consumed over the course of a few hours. He played so erratically that at one point, casino security checked on him; at another, he cut his hand after shattering an ashtray. He also took out multiple “This Trip Only” credit markers of up to $3.5 million.
In its recent 24-page response to MGM’s motion to dismiss the case, Manley’s attorneys Paul Hejmanowski and Charles McCrea revealed an expert report filed on their behalf by former MGM President and Chief Operating Officer Danny Wade, who they say was “instrumental in adopting the policy when he was president of the MGM.” The contents of that report have not yet been made public.
MGM’s defense team, Lawrence Semenza III and Katie Cannata, has countered Dr. Daniel Overbeek in a rebuttal report that concludes, “Based on the information provided in these reports, my professional opinion remains that there is nothing to indicate that Mr. Manley experienced ketamine intoxication on December 10, 2021.”
The case is still in the discovery phase and according to court documents, both sides have lined up experts to present seasoned and conflicting opinions. Attorneys for MGM continue to claim in court documents that Manley’s lawyers have failed to present any evidence that Manley was drugged at the MGM Grand, where he had been a loyal customer for more than three decades.
Not satisfied to sit back and let the attorneys fight it out, Manley has embarked on a billboard campaign in an effort to win the case in the court of public opinion. He started with a public announcement of a $500,000 reward for information that would help prove the drugging theory; that increased to the current million-dollar offer.
It’s easy to write off the billboard announcement as a stunt, something that echoes the antics of the late Vegas casino maverick Bob Stupak, but it’s also true that Manley has plenty of money to throw around and is doing so by doubling his bet.
Is the gambler’s PR campaign getting ahead of the legal effort?
For its part, MGM has consistently maintained that it followed professional standards and practices and that the plaintiff has yet to show proof.
