8
Chapter One
A Surprisingly
Powerful Addiction
Gambling addiction affects a variety of people in the United
States, both old and young. Take the case of Stephanie Iacopino,
a sixty-five-year-old woman from Toms River, New Jersey. Iacopi-
no became a compulsive gambler who lived for the excitement of
playing the machines in dimly lit casinos. At the height of her ad-
diction, Iacopino slipped out one night with an ATM card linked to
a church charity on which her husband served as treasurer. She
drove to the Borgata casino in Atlantic City, where in short order
she drained the account of more than $18,000.
Iacopino soon pleaded guilty to second-degree theft, which
carries a possible jail term of five to ten years, and she was or-
dered to restore the church funds. Following a series of strokes
and hospital stays, she served almost four months in a correc-
tional facility for women near Clinton, New Jersey. She then spent
nearly two years in the state’s intensive supervision program. To-
day Iacopino is a recovering gambling addict trying to avoid the
lure of slot machines. One slip could be disastrous for her and her
husband. “We don’t have a nest egg,” Iacopino admits. “We live
paycheck to paycheck.”
4
A Serious Health Disorder
Gambling addiction is a serious health disorder, a fact that many
people may find surprising. Gambling can be addictive in much
the same way that drugs and alcohol are. It is what mental health
experts call a behavioral addiction, and it can take over a person’s
