Months ahead of the opening of the Encore casino in Everett, gaming officials in Massachusetts are facing a court battle with the casino's former owner, Steve Wynn.
Last year, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission ordered an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against Wynn, as well as a review of his company handled. The commission had planned to release its report late last year to determine whether Wynn Resorts was "suitable" to hold a casino license at the Everett location. However, in November, Wynn filed a lawsuit to stop them.
"It is still our goal to get this resolved as quickly as we can,” said Edward Bedrosian, the executive director of the commission.
The lawsuit alleges that investigators accessed and included privileged information in their report, which should be excluded if it were to be published. According to court documents, Wynn's attorneys wrote that investigators had "a total disregard for protecting the privileged communications of Mr. Wynn."
Friday, Nevada Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez ruled that some of the investigation's findings cannot be released until the lawsuit is resolved.
"We do not believe the facts support Mr. Wynn's statement," said David Mackey, an attorney for the firm Anderson Kreiger, which is representing the commission in the case.
During a meeting Thursday, Mackey updated the commission on its progress with the case, but was unable to say what will happen to the portions of the report Wynn's attorneys have challenged.
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Despite the delay, Wynn's Everett project, which was renamed Encore, has been operating on schedule. The $2.5 billion casino is preparing to open in June.
When asked whether the report could prevent the commission from confirming a license for the project, Bedrosian would not give any indication.
"I can't speculate," he said.
