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August 22nd 2006
Prison for Lehigh Bank Robber
An upstanding university student from Lehigh in Pennsylvania was recently sentenced to prison for a bank robbery he committed in order to pay off online gambling debts. Gregory Horan Jnr. committed the robbery in December last year with two fraternity brothers waiting obliviously in a car outside. He has been sentenced to ten years in prison.
The story of Gregory Hogan has captivated all those who have heard it. The son of a reverend Hogan was brought up in a solid family and had a bright future ahead of him. But Hogan fell into gambling debts while playing online poker at college and then resorted to the most drastic of actions. Incredibly, as he robbed the bank, his two fraternity friends who waited in the car outside had no idea he was doing anything other than making a standard legitimate withdrawal.
In sentencing Hogan to ten years in prison Judge William H. Platt has effectively denied that a gambling problem can be used to excuse illegal actions. Although Hogan is unlikely to serve more than 22 months in prison the sentence is a severe one and a reflection of the gravity of the crime.
Throughout the trial Hogan and his family have been placing the blame for his actions squarely at the foot of poker, suggesting that it gave him a “sick mind” and forced him to steal off his friends and family. But whilst his story is tragic (and gambling problems are not to be sniffed at) this line is highly disingenuous. The truth is that there are many stable poker players in the world, far more than unstable in fact, and the minority that cannot control their gambling must accept this as a shortcoming of their own making, not anyone elses. The judgement of Judge Platt reflects this reality.
Submitted: 22/08/2006 09:59:14
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