By Lori Ehde
Dan Kern, former owner of the Hardwick Green Lantern Bar, was ordered to pay back the $7,676.80 he stole from the American Legion pull tabs and has to find another line of work.
Kern, "Cue Ball," was sentenced earlier this month for felony theft during a hearing in Rock County District Court.
Kern, 37, was found guilty this summer of skimming funds from the pull tab box operated by the Hardwick American Legion.
According to the sentence order filed by Judge David Christensen July 17, Kern is on probation for five years.
He'll make payments of $300 to repay the stolen funds, and will pay further restitution to the Hardwick American Legion of $175.20.
According to the sentence order, he'll pay a fine of $1,038 by completing community service work. One-half of that fine will go toward paying for gambling dependency treatment and aftercare.
During probation, he is banned from working in businesses relating to the use or sale of alcohol.
He was also ordered to abstain from drugs and alcohol and to stay away from bars and gambling establishments.
The Hardwick Green Lantern Bar is now under management of Kern's sister, Carrie Van Dyke, who also runs the adjacent Green Lantern Restaurant.
According to the complaint filed March 14 in Rock County District Court, local law enforcement executed a search warrant of the Green Lantern with the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.
The agents and local officers found on Dec. 3, 2001, gambling and bar proceeds co-mingled.
When questioned, Kern said the games had been played, but instead of depositing money into the Hardwick American Legion gambling account, he had used the money to repay personal debt.
Kern acknowledged involvement in personal gambling, and said he used proceeds from pull tab games to pay down personal debt resulting from gambling.
Effect on local
charitable gambling
As a broader result of Kern's pull tab theft, there will be less charitable money circulating in Rock County.
Because the Hardwick American Legion knew about KernÕs money problems and was allowing him time to pay back the pull tab deficit, the Minnesota Gambling Board suspended the Legion's gambling privileges.
That suspension is in effect for six months in the Kenneth Bar, and the Legion's gambling license is revoked for two years in the Hardwick Green Lantern Bar.
Pull tab receipts allowed the Hardwick American Legion to pay out more than $1,000 per month in local charitable donations.
Further, the Legion paid the two bars rent for operating the pull tab business, negotiation based on activity generated.
The Green Lantern received roughly $400 per month rent for the Legion pull tabs, but Kenneth received $800 per month.
During the six-month suspension imposed on American Legion, Kenneth will lose $4,800 in rent revenue, despite the fact that it had no part in the pull tab theft that prompted the penalty.
"It is our responsibility to see that games get played, and that money makes it to the bank within four days after they're played," said Gary Danger, compliance officer with the Minnesota Gambling Board.
"I think they (the American Legion members) were trying to give the bar owner the benefit of the doubt, but the Legion is held accountable to the board if they're not getting their money to the bank."
The LegionÕs charitable gambling license was suspended effective May 6.