Lancet Jades
03-10-2004, 02:18 PM
Suit filed against Powerball winner
<LI type=square>Race track worker accuses Whittaker of assault, battery
By Charles Shumaker (http://www.wvgazette.com/displayEmailContact.php?rid=13 7)
STAFF WRITER
Record Powerball jackpot winner Jack Whittaker has been sued by a female worker at Tri-State Race Track and Gaming Center, who alleges Whittaker forced her head toward his crotch while he gambled at the track in March 2003.
Charity D. Fortner, a floor attendant at the track, alleged Whittaker was gambling in the “High Roller Room” at the track with a female friend when the incident occurred, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Kanawha Circuit Court.
When Whittaker’s friend’s slot machine ran out of tokens, Fortner reached to fill it up. While she bent down, her lawsuit alleges, Whittaker grabbed Fortner’s ponytail and shoved her head toward his crotch. She walked away and was replaced by another female attendant, according to the lawsuit.
Fortner alleges that Whittaker snapped the other woman’s bra strap, and that he grabbed another woman’s rear end, although she did not see those incidents.
“The acts and conduct of [Whittaker] were outrageous in that they offended the generally accepted standards of decency and morality of the community,” Fortner’s lawsuit alleges.
Her lawsuit alleges common-law assault and battery against Whittaker. She asked a jury to award her an undisclosed amount of monetary damages.
Fortner still works at the track, according to her lawyer, Scott Segal.
No criminal charges were filed against Whittaker from the incident, and track officials handled it internally, Segal said.
“The track chose to deal with it, which was satisfactory to her,” Segal said.
The track’s general manager, Cathy Brackbill, said she could not comment about any possible incident.
“We have a pretty strict customer privacy policy that we abide by,” Brackbill said.
She said Whittaker is still allowed on the track’s property.
“It is my understanding that he is not allowed in a room alone with female employees any longer,” Segal said. Brackbill would not confirm or deny that allegation.
Charleston lawyer Norman Daniels, who has represented Whittaker in the past, asked a reporter to fax him a copy of the lawsuit but did not respond to a request for comment.
Whittaker won the largest lottery prize ever in December 2002, taking a cash payout of more than $113 million from his $315 million winning Powerball ticket.
Since then, his nonprofit Jack Whittaker Foundation has helped West Virginians in various ways, including finding jobs, buying food or receiving an education.
But Whittaker has also been in the news for the wrong reasons. In January, he was charged with driving drunk, and with trying to hit the manager of a St. Albans bar. In that case, Whittaker allegedly threatened to have the bar manager and his family killed, police said.
Last August, two employees of the Pink Pony strip club in Cross Lanes allegedly drugged Whittaker and tried to steal $545,000 from his Lincoln Navigator parked outside. In January, someone stole $100,000 from the Navigator while it was parked outside his Putnam County home.
To contact staff writer Charles Shumaker, use e-mail or call 348-1240.
<LI type=square>Race track worker accuses Whittaker of assault, battery
By Charles Shumaker (http://www.wvgazette.com/displayEmailContact.php?rid=13 7)
STAFF WRITER
Record Powerball jackpot winner Jack Whittaker has been sued by a female worker at Tri-State Race Track and Gaming Center, who alleges Whittaker forced her head toward his crotch while he gambled at the track in March 2003.
Charity D. Fortner, a floor attendant at the track, alleged Whittaker was gambling in the “High Roller Room” at the track with a female friend when the incident occurred, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Kanawha Circuit Court.
When Whittaker’s friend’s slot machine ran out of tokens, Fortner reached to fill it up. While she bent down, her lawsuit alleges, Whittaker grabbed Fortner’s ponytail and shoved her head toward his crotch. She walked away and was replaced by another female attendant, according to the lawsuit.
Fortner alleges that Whittaker snapped the other woman’s bra strap, and that he grabbed another woman’s rear end, although she did not see those incidents.
“The acts and conduct of [Whittaker] were outrageous in that they offended the generally accepted standards of decency and morality of the community,” Fortner’s lawsuit alleges.
Her lawsuit alleges common-law assault and battery against Whittaker. She asked a jury to award her an undisclosed amount of monetary damages.
Fortner still works at the track, according to her lawyer, Scott Segal.
No criminal charges were filed against Whittaker from the incident, and track officials handled it internally, Segal said.
“The track chose to deal with it, which was satisfactory to her,” Segal said.
The track’s general manager, Cathy Brackbill, said she could not comment about any possible incident.
“We have a pretty strict customer privacy policy that we abide by,” Brackbill said.
She said Whittaker is still allowed on the track’s property.
“It is my understanding that he is not allowed in a room alone with female employees any longer,” Segal said. Brackbill would not confirm or deny that allegation.
Charleston lawyer Norman Daniels, who has represented Whittaker in the past, asked a reporter to fax him a copy of the lawsuit but did not respond to a request for comment.
Whittaker won the largest lottery prize ever in December 2002, taking a cash payout of more than $113 million from his $315 million winning Powerball ticket.
Since then, his nonprofit Jack Whittaker Foundation has helped West Virginians in various ways, including finding jobs, buying food or receiving an education.
But Whittaker has also been in the news for the wrong reasons. In January, he was charged with driving drunk, and with trying to hit the manager of a St. Albans bar. In that case, Whittaker allegedly threatened to have the bar manager and his family killed, police said.
Last August, two employees of the Pink Pony strip club in Cross Lanes allegedly drugged Whittaker and tried to steal $545,000 from his Lincoln Navigator parked outside. In January, someone stole $100,000 from the Navigator while it was parked outside his Putnam County home.
To contact staff writer Charles Shumaker, use e-mail or call 348-1240.