This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
'Girls Gone Wild' Founder Dukes it Out in Court With Vegas Casino
Photo by Joe Seer via Shutterstock
Everyone's favorite pornographer, Joe Francis, is engaged in a court battle with The Wynn resort in Las Vegas over a disputed casino debt amounting to about $2 million. After being told by a Nevada Supreme Court judge that he has to pay it, Francis filed suit in an L.A. court yesterday claiming that he's being prosecuted maliciously.
The Daily News reports that Francis incurred the debt in 2007. In addition to filing the lawsuit, Francis' lawyer, David Houston, has said that he will ask the state Supreme Court judge to reconsider. The dispute has been in and out of the courts several times. A judge in the Clark County District Court system ruled that Francis hadn't committed a felony by not paying, and a state court judge dismissed criminal theft and bad check charges against Francis (an unpaid casino debt is essentially the same thing as a bad check in Nevada).
Francis' lawsuit alleges that The Wynn and Steve Wynn are out of line in asking him to cough up the money. He says that Wynn deliberately lied to prosecutors about the debt, and that The Wynn tried to collect the money from a bank account of Francis' that they knew to be closed.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
