Understanding Gambling-Motivated Crime

Gambling doesn’t just lead to financial loss, it can quietly push people into decisions they never imagined making. This session reveals how addiction, desperation, and shame can collide, turning everyday individuals into actions that are deeply human and often misunderstood.

Price: $26.25

Credit

1.75 CE

Prerequisite

None

Class Instructor

Dr. Michelle Malkin

Class Description

Gambling disorder is associated with an increased risk of gambling-motivated criminal behavior ("Gambling-Motivated Crime"). Unlike substance use disorders, which are frequently addressed through diversion courts and specialized treatment programs, individuals whose offenses stem from gambling addiction often lack access to equivalent resources within the criminal justice system. This presentation offers an in-depth examination of gambling-motivated crime, the limited systemic response currently in place, and the pressing need for expanded diversion and treatment pathways. Dr. Malkin integrates insights from her own lived experience to enhance understanding of this issue. Participants will gain practical strategies for identifying and supporting clients who may be involved in gambling-motivated crimes. The presentation also includes considerations for assessment, referral, and collaboration with justice-system stakeholders to promote more effective and compassionate care.

Learning Objectives

  • Describe the 4 levels of risk that occur in progression, the development of a gambling disorder that may lead to the commission of a gambling-related crime
  • Identify at least 5 social, economic, and legal consequences of problem gambling that are linked to the commission of gambling-related crime
  • Identify 5 ways the criminal justice system could provide more resources for problem gamblers, including the potential for gambling treatment diversion courts/programs
  • Identify 7 tools and strategies for practitioners who treat problem gamblers who may be facing criminal prosecution for gambling-motivated crimes

Educational Goals

  • Understand why people with Gambling Disorder commit crimes
  • Identify the relationship between social, economic, and legal consequences of problem gambling and gambling-motivated crime
  • Understand how the criminal justice system could provide more resources for problem gamblers, including the potential for gambling treatment diversion courts/programs
  • Identify tools and strategies for practitioners who treat problem gamblers who may be facing criminal prosecution for gambling-motivated crimes

Outline

  • Why this subject matters/lived experience (40 min.)
  • Understanding Gambling-Motivated Crime (15 min.)
  • Research on relationship between gambling-related harms and commission of GMC (20 min.)
  • Suicidal ideation and Gambling-Motivated Crime (5 min.)
  • Issues with traditional criminal justice consequences for Gambling-Motivated Crime and possible remedies (10 min.)
  • The Gambling-Motivated Crime Checklist (10 min.)
  • Serving clients facing legal consequences (5 min.)

Topics: Gambler, At-Risk, Treatment Techniques, Affected Other, External Resources, Required for CCGC

Class Content