There is no public record of a settlement in Katrina Bookman’s case against Resorts World Casino. Her lawsuit over the $42,949,672.76 jackpot a slot machine displayed in August 2016 was still active as of late October 2024, and she has not been reported to receive anything beyond the $2.25 ticket the machine printed that night.1Easy Vegas. Slot Machine Malfunctions Cases
What Happened at the Machine
On August 23, 2016, Bookman was playing a Sphinx penny slot at Resorts World Casino in Jamaica, Queens, when the screen showed winnings of $42,949,672.76. Had it been real, it would have been the largest slot jackpot in American history.2CNN. Slot Machine Winner Offered Steak Dinner She was escorted off the floor and told to come back the next day. When she did, a casino representative told her the machine had suffered an “obvious malfunction” and offered her a complimentary steak dinner.3Time. Resorts World Casino Steak Dinner Slots
Why the Casino Said She Won Nothing
The New York State Gaming Commission investigated and ruled the display was “clearly a display malfunction.” Under state law, a malfunction “voids all plays,” and the commission said Bookman was entitled only to the amount printed on her ticket: $2.25.4ABC7 New York. Woman Thinks She Won $43M in Slot Machine Malfunction
The commission also told the casino it could not legally pay even the Sphinx machine’s posted maximum of $6,500, because the voided play meant there were no legitimate winnings to distribute. Nothing in the rules stopped the casino from offering money voluntarily to resolve the dispute; the prohibition was against paying out a voided play as if it were a real win.5Fox 5 New York. Casino Tells $42M Winner Slot Machine Malfunctioned
The Lawsuit and Where It Stands
On June 14, 2017, attorney Alan Ripka filed a 17-page complaint in Queens County Supreme Court naming Resorts World Casino, its parent company Genting New York LLC, and slot manufacturer International Game Technology. The suit sought at least $43 million and raised three claims: common-law negligence over maintenance of the equipment, breach of contract on the theory that inserting money and receiving a displayed win creates an enforceable contract, and negligent misrepresentation.6Courthouse News Service. Casino Sued for Downgrading Jackpot to Steak Dinner7WSAZ. Woman Sues Casino That Offered Her Steak Dinner Instead of $43 Million Jackpot
On August 28, 2018, the court dismissed the negligence claim but allowed the breach of contract claim to move forward.1Easy Vegas. Slot Machine Malfunctions Cases That ruling kept alive the central question in the case: whether the machine’s on-screen display of a jackpot amounts to a binding promise to pay.
Since then, nothing further has surfaced publicly. No settlement has been announced, no verdict entered, and no payment beyond the $2.25 ticket disclosed. The case was still listed as active as of late October 2024.1Easy Vegas. Slot Machine Malfunctions Cases
Why These Cases Rarely Pay Out
Players who challenge denied jackpots usually lose. In Iowa, Pauline McKee sued after a Hello Kitty slot displayed a bonus of nearly $42 million; the casino paid her $1.85, and the Iowa Supreme Court denied her claim in 2015, holding that a casino’s obligation is tied to the actual rules of the game, not a malfunctioning screen. Mississippi’s supreme court has taken a similar view, treating the payout listed on the machine’s paytable as the contract between casino and player.6Courthouse News Service. Casino Sued for Downgrading Jackpot to Steak Dinner1Easy Vegas. Slot Machine Malfunctions Cases
Players have won in rare cases, usually when the casino damaged its own credibility, such as by destroying machine evidence before regulators could inspect it. The “malfunction voids all pays and plays” disclaimer Resorts World relied on is standard across the industry; New Jersey’s Casino Control Act, for one, requires that exact language on every slot machine, and courts have generally treated it as enforceable.8Casino.org. Bally’s Atlantic City IGT Explain Why $1M Jackpot Wasn’t Paid1Easy Vegas. Slot Machine Malfunctions Cases
What makes Bookman’s case unusual is the size of the disputed amount and the fact that her contract claim survived dismissal at all, keeping the lawsuit alive years after most similar disputes have been resolved. Whether a malfunctioning display can ever create a binding obligation to pay remains an open question in her case, and until a court answers it or the parties settle, the public record shows Bookman has not been paid.