Gamblers at the Commerce Casino's high-limit Texas Hold 'Em tables didn't appear to notice as armed sheriff's deputies shuffled past them on their way toward a red-carpeted stairwell. Some deputies were in uniform, guns holstered at their waists or strapped to their thighs.
It was 8 a.m. on a recent Thursday, and the world's largest poker club was playing host to a divergent clientele: serious gamblers, some with more than $1,000 in chips, and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department brass on their way to a management seminar.
For more than a year, Sheriff Lee Baca's top executives have held quarterly conferences in a ballroom at the Commerce Casino's hotel. The unlikely meeting spot concerns some sheriff's officials, who fear the appearance of a conflict of interest because the department is responsible for enforcing state gambling laws at the casino.
Some sheriff's officials say they're also concerned about the appearance that Baca is funneling business to a casino that has long supported his political career.
Since taking office in 1999, Baca has accepted more than $25,000 in political contributions from the casino, its shareholders and employees. The casino has donated more than $100,000 to the sheriff's youth charity.
Casino executives have given the sheriff gifts worth more than $2,300 since 1999, according to statements of economic interest that the sheriff files with the county. Among the gifts were basketball and concert tickets, food and wine, golf fees and a $1,500 sculpture for Baca's 1999 wedding.
Three Commerce Casino executives -- Ralph Wong, Harvey Ross and Haig Papaian -- hold concealed weapons permits approved by the Sheriff's Department. A Baca spokesman said the permits were originally approved by Sheriff Sherman Block and were renewed by the department because of ongoing threats at the casino.
In 2004, the Commerce Casino donated $10,000 to the campaign for Measure A, a Baca-led initiative that would have raised the sales tax to fund law enforcement in Los Angeles County. In the same election, Baca endorsed a statewide proposition that could have allowed the Commerce Casino to install more than 1,000 slot machines. Voters rejected both measures.
The management meetings at the Commerce Casino are daylong events that typically include awards ceremonies and policy discussion. Sheriff's managers are required by the department to pay for the catered meetings, said Undersheriff Larry Waldie, who organizes the events. At $35 a head, the 125-person meeting Oct. 20 generated about $4,000 for the casino.
