57-year-old Lena Mae Tibbs, of Indianapolis claims to have suffered from emotional distress and racial discrimination after the Indiana Live! Casino threatened to prosecute her for claiming a $100 bill found on the floor of their casino.

The casino incident took place on July 29, 2008, when Tibbs was gambling at the Indiana Live! Casino and a passerby saw a $100 bill on the floor and asked her if it belonged to her.

Tibbs had other bills on her, so naturally, she assumed she had dropped the money and accepted it. Little did she know, this is where all of her problems would begin.  

The casino then conducted a further investigation and found video footage that suggested the money had came from a nearby slot machine that was awarding funds to another player.

Shortly after, the Indiana Live! Casino accused Mrs. Tibbs of stealing the money and she was ordered to appear at Shelby Superior Court. Thankfully, the case was dropped in September, when the player who had been winning at the slot machine when the incident occurred did not wish to pursue the charge.

Mrs. Tibbs, an African-American, was outraged by the accusation and charge placed against her and has decided to sue the casino for the emotional distress and racial discrimination.  Attorney Blair Wheat, acting on behalf of Mrs Tibbs said:

“Lena was at a table and had money. The machine kicked a $100 bill within a couple feet of her. A third person asked if it was hers. She thought it was, and the next thing she knows, she was being prosecuted for a year.”

Shelby County Deputy Prosecutor David Riggins maintained:

“Unless you wagered it, you can’t cash it in…She (Tibbs) had been charged because we felt she exerted unauthorized control over the $100 bill.”

Miss B says: What happen to the old saying, “finders keepers, losers weepers?” It seems to me that Mrs. Tibbs honestly believed the money had belonged to her and that’s why she took it. Give the woman a brake. Input anyone?