Kendric Laronte Weatherspoon is hardly just an ordinary criminal. He’s hardly just your run-of-the-mill cheat either. Weatherspoon is the first person who is not affiliated with the Mafia, or hasn’t cheated extensively at a Las Vegas Casino, to be logged into Nevada’s “Black Book,” an almanac of individuals thought so despicable that they do not belong in sin city or any of the Silver State’s casinos.
Notoriety Wins Criminal Entry into Black Book
Weatherspoon has a long rap record, which includes a history of violence against women and strong alleged ties to sex trafficking in Las Vegas Casinos. He’s also in the crosshair of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Therefore, Nevada’s decision to log his name into the Black Book is not at all surprising. It comes as tailwinds from US attorney Jason Frierson’s office’s efforts to tackle sex trafficking have been whipping up, too.
Frierson said that sex traffickers may find Las Vegas particularly attractive, with several prominent events moved into the country, including the upcoming Super Bowl next year. These efforts are laudable, especially with 5,600 victims of sex trafficking reported every year in Nevada. Weatherspoon has a part to play in this as well.
He has faced 30 cases by a Las Vegas Justice Court. He has faced charges of sex trafficking of an adult, battery by strangulation, drug dealing, domestic battery, kidnapping, and sexual assault to name just a few of the offenses Weatherspoon faces today. Nevada has found the person fitting to enter its Black Book created in 1960 to boost tourism to Las Vegas and clear up Sin City’s name for crime and ties to Mafioso types.
Commissioners took the matters in their own hands last Thursday, arguing that the criminal did indeed deserve to be banned and prohibited from the state’s casinos. Normally, a Black Book listing is a measure that is used sparingly, as conventional law enforcement is usually sufficient to take care of such matters.
Possibly Changing the Mission of the Book
In the case of Weatherspoon, the notorious criminal will now have his name inscribed alongside other disreputable characters, such as Sam Giancana, Murray Llewellyn Humphreys, Michael Coppola, and many others. Weatherspoon did not attend last Thursday’s commission meeting, a courtesy that people nominated for the ban are usually extended.
With the mafia largely gone from Nevada, it’s possible that the Black Book will now seek to act more prohibitively in cases where the law has moved slowly and involve casinos in a more determined way when it comes to restricting access to despicable characters such as Weatherspoon.