January 10, 2006

Coroner rules death caused by gambling addiction

Filed under: Political Stupidity — Michael Hampton @ 12:34 pm

Andre Baril, 62, of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, liked playing the lottery. He was a big fan of Loto-Quebec’s Banco game, from which he won $25,000 a few years ago. But since then he spent his entire life savings, over $50,000, trying to hit the jackpot again.

Last summer, Baril fatally shot himself. But he’s not the Stupid Person of the Day.

The coroner announced this week that Baril’s death was caused by gambling addiction, and called for new laws regulating the sale of lottery tickets.

Coroner Jean-Francois Dorval says people who sell lottery tickets have to take some responsibility, “like someone who sells alcohol.”

He says lotto retailers should be licensed and should be trained to recognize gambling addicts. Those who sell tickets to addicts should lose their licenses, he says.

Loto-Quebec spokesman Jean-Pierre Roy says the agency will consider the idea, but that it may be difficult to implement. — CBC News

I suspect that he died from a bullet wound, rather than a gambling addiction. And for that, Jean-Francois Dorval becomes today’s Stupid Person of the Day.

If you have a gambling addiction, help is available. Call +1-800-522-4700 in the U.S.

1 Comment »

  1. Cause of death - Gambling Addiction…

    62-year-old Andre Baril blew his life savings of $50,000 in a matter of weeks on a lottery game called Banco. Baril was addicted, and it only took a few weeks for his savings to dwindle.
    According to family the retired Baril had been playing reguarl…

    Trackback by BlogOfStupidity.com — January 11, 2006 @ 4:19 pm

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