The Bollard goes monthly
Welcome to the fourth, and final, quarterly issue of The Bollard. Beginning this summer, The Bollard will be published every month. The June issue hits the streets in late May. Resurgam!
Future issues will have art and entertainment listings you can actually read, plus more local news and features you won’t find anywhere else. Regular series like That’s My Dump! and The Land of Forgotten Cocktails will continue, joined by previously online-exclusive content like The Breakfast Serial and Elizabeth Peavey’s column, Outta My Yard.
The transition to monthly publication coincides with the redesign of our Web site, thebollard.com, later this spring. And in other news, this is the first issue produced in our new Old Port office above Gritty’s. Big thanks to Ed, Richard, Thomas, and the whole crew downstairs for making us feel so at home.
Gamble on
Last issue’s cover story on illegal gambling in Maine probably provided state cops with more useful intel than the Portland Police Department has produced in years — and like the PPD, we weren’t even trying.
A recent sweep by state fuzz resulted in the disappearance of video poker machines and football squares in several Portland establishments. [See “State cops make anti-gambling sweep in Portland,” Jan. 17, 2008, in the News section of thebollard.com.]
The crackdown got us wondering again about the PPD’s approach to illegal gaming. Some of the bars caught in the sweep are patronized by local constables during off-duty hours, and in most cases, all one has to do to find evidence of illegal gambling is walk through the front door.
So what’s the deal? Why do Portland cops turn a blind eye to criminal gambling in plain sight?
Portland brass weren’t comfortable talking to The Bollard about this by phone, so the city released a statement on their behalf saying that while they do have to prioritize, “Illegal gaming is taken quite seriously by the City of Portland and to that end, the City works closely with other jurisdictions including the State Police to quell these types of illegal activities.”
Maybe they mean New Hampshire State Police. Asked how the PPD has been contributing to his office’s gaming law enforcement efforts, Maine State Police Sgt. Bill Gomane said, “I can tell you that we have talked.” Just talked? “Yes,” he replied. “Hopefully, in the future, we will work together on some gaming
issues in Portland.”
— Chris Busby
