Gambler to perform his penance behind bars
Man caught palming cards at church festival to serve six months
Thursday, August 7, 2008 3:28 AM
By Bruce Cadwallader
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
A lifelong gambler caught palming cards at a church festival asked yesterday to pay his $5,000 fine to the church as penance.
A judge, though intrigued by the idea, sent him to jail for six months.
Roland "Rico" Chapa, 68, was found guilty in June of felony cheating and possession of a criminal tool -- the king of diamonds that kept showing up in his hand at the St. Timothy Church fundraiser in July 2007.
In an attempt to avoid jail time, Chapa's attorneys asked for community service, house arrest, even a donation to the church.
"My first thought was to fine him $5,000 and have him pay it to the church, but I don't think I can legally do that," said Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Richard S. Sheward.
"And I can't order restitution because I don't have a solid number on the ill-gotten gains he received. If there is some way to accomplish that, I'm open to it."
Assistant Prosecutor Amanda Lowe said later that she would agree to the money being given to St. Timothy.
Sheward suspended a 22-month prison term and put Chapa on three years of probation but sent him from court directly to the county jail.
His two grown daughters, who didn't expect jail time, ran screaming from the courtroom. They said they would appeal the verdict.
"I apologize to the Catholic Church if I've done anything wrong," Chapa said.
Defense attorneys Samuel Weiner and Lewis T. Dye said Chapa wasn't a good candidate for incarceration, because he has diabetes and high blood pressure.
Volunteer dealers at the church festival accused Chapa, who was drunk, of cheating at blackjack. One said a two of spades dropped from his slacks when he stood up.
Jurors found him guilty in less than 30 minutes after a two-day trial.
In an interview after the trial, Chapa said he lost money that night and had only $450 when deputies arrived. He told deputies he was a lifelong bookmaker and a gangster.
His apartment on Sawmill Village Drive on the Northwest Side was raided as a sports bookmaking operation last year. He agreed to plead guilty to one count of gambling but did not serve jail time.
Ohio law makes cheating a felony for those with a previous gambling conviction.  |