Our People

Fredric Gushin founded Spectrum Gaming Group in 1993 after working 13 years for the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, where he was promoted to Assistant Director and Assistant Attorney General. At the DGE, Gushin oversaw for the State the openings of 12 Atlantic City casino hotels and managed civil and administrative litigation before the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. He has personally argued more than 50 cases before the Commission.

Gushin has worked with a variety of private-sector and governmental clients since founding Spectrum. He has advised private casino developers on operational and management issues and provided gaming expertise to a number of gaming jurisdictions over the years. He also served as a Commissioner with the Oneida Indian Nation Gaming Commission that regulates the Turning Stone Resort Casino near Syracuse, NY.

Gushin has worked with private sector clients throughout the United States, the Caribbean, South America, Asia and Europe on a wide range of issues. As Assistant Director and Assistant Attorney General of New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement, he oversaw all compliance related issues regarding New Jersey’s multibillion-dollar gaming industry including security and surveillance, development and compliance with accounting and internal control procedures and development of emergency plans to respond to incidents occurring in casino.

With Spectrum, Gushin has led engagements evaluating casino operations for compliance for private sector and governmental clients. He is a member of the Gerson Lehrman Group Council of Advisors, a global network of experts and industry professionals.

Gushin received his BA from the American University School of Government and Public Administration in 1970, his Juris Doctorate from Rutgers University in 1973, and his Masters from American University in 1979.

Michael Pollock oversees all economic studies performed by Spectrum Gaming Group, including broad-scale impact studies for country, state and local governments, and feasibility studies for private-sector clients. His international work includes projects in Guam and Korea.

Pollock began analyzing the casino industry in New Jersey at its inception in 1978 and served as spokesman for the New Jersey Casino Control Commission from 1991 through 1996. During this period of rapid deregulation, his charge was to maintain public confidence in the integrity of the regulatory system.

Pollock is the author of the award-winning book, Hostage to Fortune: Atlantic City and Casino Gambling, published by the Center for Analysis of Public Issues in Princeton. This book, which is presently being updated, examines the impact of casinos on Atlantic City and New Jersey.

Pollock publishes Gaming Industry Observer, a nationally recognized, award-winning newsletter that focuses on trends that impact the gaming industry. Pollock founded and is a producer of the prestigious East Coast Gaming Congress, held each spring in Atlantic City.

He has testified on regulatory issues before the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Indian Gaming, and has been a featured speaker at the Congressional Gaming Caucus, a group of U.S. House of Representatives members from gaming jurisdictions. He has also testified numerous times before New Jersey legislative committees on gaming matters.

Pollock has won 20 journalism awards, and is the former editorial page editor of The Press of Atlantic City. Pollock is often cited by national media outlets, including the New York Times, Star-Ledger, BBC, ABC News and National Public Radio.

He earned his MBA, with high honors, from Rutgers University, and is a member of the adjunct faculty of both Rutgers University and Richard Stockton College.

Harvey Perkins has over thirty years of casino gaming industry experience and has held executive positions at major gaming properties in Atlantic City and New Orleans.

Perkins has held the positions of Director Casino Administration with Resorts International in Atlantic City; Director Casino Administration, Director of Planning, Quality and Analysis, Assistant to the President, and Vice President of Gaming Operations with Showboat in Atlantic City; and Assistant General Manager with Harrah's New Orleans.

Perkins has extensive experience in strategic planning, market research, financial analysis, business planning, metric evaluation, regulation preparation, internal control preparation, operation audits, business practice review, service audits, creation and implementation of customer service programs, labor analysis, casino unit profitability analysis, market analysis, and competitive marketing and operational analysis.

Perkins has been retained by several major corporations and investment banks to act as a gaming advisor and quantify prospective acquisitions for the clients. He has conducted feasibility studies for casino hotel construction projects and casino expansions; and conducted economic impact studies of proposed casino projects in new jurisdictions. Internationally, Perkins has led Spectrum projects in Aruba, the Bahamas, Canada, Macau, the Philippines, Vietnam and Russia.

He has been licensed as a casino key employee and qualifier in New Jersey a key employee in Louisiana and licensed as a key employee by the Seneca Gaming Authority.

Perkins attended the University of Arizona and is a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno-Casino Executive Development Program.

Joseph Weinert has been analyzing the gaming industry for 14 years. He researches and writes economic, international and regulatory studies for private- and public-sector clients worldwide. He has been the project leader for numerous studies in multiple domestic jurisdictions, as well as in Czech Republic, Russia, Slovak Republic, Spain and United Kingdom.

Weinert is a member of the Gerson Lehrman Group Council of Advisors, a global network of experts and industry professionals. He founded the Pennsylvania Gaming Congress and helps organize Spectrum’s two other nationally recognized conferences, the East Coast Gaming Congress and the Florida Gaming Summit. In addition, he is Editor of Spectrum’s widely acclaimed newsletter, Gaming Industry Observer, and its GIO2 premium service.

Weinert came to Spectrum after 18 years at The Press of Atlantic City, where for his last eight years he was responsible for the newspaper’s intensive coverage of the casino industry. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences throughout the country and has been quoted in prominent media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today and CNN. In addition, he has testified before legislative committees in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Weinert holds a BA in Journalism from Ohio Wesleyan University and a certificate for completing the Wharton Seminars for Business Writers at the University of Pennsylvania.

Michael Diamond has extensive investigative research experience, both in journalism and in government. He joined Spectrum after a 33-year career at The Press of Atlantic City, where he served as a special projects writer, editorial page editor, statehouse correspondent and bureau chief, all while frequently covering gaming-industry issues. He won 23 state and national journalism awards and was an active member in such organizations as the Legislative Correspondents Club, National Conference of Editorial Writers, and Investigative Reporters and Editors.

Diamond left the newspaper in 2005 to become an investigator with the New Jersey Office of Inspector General. He was responsible for reviewing allegations of waste, fraud and corruption.

At Spectrum, Diamond focuses on analyzing the economic and social impacts of legalized gambling and also on regulatory research. He was the project leader for Spectrum’s widely acclaimed 2009 study for the State of Connecticut that analyzed the impacts of all forms of legalized gambling. Diamond also serves as Associate Editor of Spectrum’s analytical newsletter, Gaming Industry Observer.

Diamond graduated from Rider University with a BA degree in Political Science.

Allison McCoy, Vice President of Business Development, is a seasoned marketing professional experienced in all facets of branding, promotion, and event management. Her diverse background features significant international experience that includes extensive work with high-budget, high-profile international events such as the Seoul Olympic Games, the Atlanta Olympic Games, and the Turner Goodwill Games.

Most recently, McCoy served as conference director for Global Gaming Expo (G2E), the pre-eminent conference and tradeshow for the casino and gaming industry, produced by Reed Exhibitions and the American Gaming Association. Prior to that, she was international relations director for Peppers and Rogers Group, visionary consultants and inventors of 1to1 strategy for customer relationship management.

McCoy holds a B.S. degree in International Business from Villanova University.

Shawn McCloud has nearly two decades of extensive, and progressive, financial, marketing, and operations analysis in the casino gaming and hospitality industry.

McCloud has held various analytical roles throughout his career and his collective experiences span through all facets of gaming resort operations – covering all casino gaming, marketing, food & beverage, hotel/rooms, and all other general and administrative areas of organization - and his active involvement in operations has been performed at all levels - from front-line to executive/corporate levels – which gives him comprehensive knowledge, and a thorough understanding, of the full-circle of casino gaming and hospitality industry operations.

McCloud has extensive experience in customer database analytics; evaluation and formulation of database marketing programs, promotional offers, and marketing campaigns; strategic marketing planning; competitive marketing analysis and research; creating and implementing performance goals and related benchmarking tools and standards; creation of yield management models and related reporting; financial and strategic planning; budgeting and forecasting models; planning, organizing, and preparation of operating and capital budgets; labor performance and payroll analysis; establishment of effective complimentary guidelines and related reporting; preparation of litigation support and valuation models; research and preparation of economic impact, feasibility, and market impact studies relating to a multitude of gaming operations and jurisdictions; along with the creation of a multitude of ad-hoc analyses, management tools, and presentations.

McCloud has held the positions of Vice President of Strategic Planning and Analysis with The Cordish Company / Gomes+Cordish Gaming Management; Vice President of Analysis with Spectrum Gaming Group; Executive Director of Financial & Marketing Analysis with Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City; and also a variety of finance related and analytical roles with both the Tropicana and Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City.

McCloud resides in southern New Jersey with his wife and daughter. He is a graduate of The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey earning a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, and is currently attending Fairleigh Dickinson University pursuing a Master of Science in Hospitality & Tourism Management.

Joan Danko, Director of Governmental Affairs, has extensive experience dealing with the public sector. As IBM executive for IBM Government Systems for Pennsylvania, she directed the company’s marketing organization in achieving the corporation’s revenue growth objectives for Commonwealth sales and services.

Danko in 2002 founded Danko Consulting, a lobbying and business development firm that provides services to companies aspiring to do business with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

She was previously Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, where she focused on special projects in the area of business taxes, workforce development and education. She also lead in the development of customized products and services to meet the needs of Fortune 500 member companies. Her other responsibilities included spearheading the Keystone Consortium designed to engage business leadership in the political process.

In 2000, Danko served as Director, Office of Corporate Alliances, for State System of Higher Education. Then Governor Tom Ridge and Chancellor McCormick supported her efforts in developing the concept and deploying the Office of Corporate Alliances for the State System. She further initiated procurements designed to develop university corporate outreach programs with companies such as IBM, UNISYS, SAIC Inc., PNC, Nabisco, Bayer Corp., Highmark, Adelphia, and Marconi.

Danko has a BA in Advertising and Public Relations from Pennsylvania State University.

Bill LaPenta, Director of Financial Analysis, is a casino and hotel industry professional with more than 20 years of operations management and analysis experience, providing critical business decision support, planning, analysis, and performance management tools to casino hotel and resort operators.

Prior to Spectrum, LaPenta served as Strategic Performance Manager for the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, where he led development of its statistical database, competitive and performance metrics reporting, and variable daily budgeting systems. He is additionally well versed in ROI and profitability studies, as well as labor analysis and controls for all aspects of casino and hotel resort operations.

LaPenta has held gaming licenses in Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey and Washington.

LaPenta holds a BA in Psychology with honors from West Chester University, and has continued graduate study in sociology, economics, and finance.

Steven M. Ingis, Legal Advisor, is an attorney with 26 years of experience in casino gaming regulation. Prior to Spectrum, he was employed by the New Jersey Casino Control Commission from 1982 until his recent retirement in September, 2008. As Assistant General Counsel for the Commission, Ingis managed the Licensing Unit in the Office of the General Counsel, and was responsible for all casino employee and entity licensing matters.

During his tenure with the Commission, Ingis advised the agency in many of the Commission’s most notable licensing matters and represented the Commission in numerous court cases, including the recent denial of Tropicana Casino Hotel’s license renewal application. In this regard, he successfully argued the appeal from the Commission’s decision in the New Jersey Appellate Division.

Prior to joining the Casino Control Commission, Ingis served as an Assistant Morris County Prosecutor and a Deputy Attorney General in the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, in addition to being employed in private practice.

Ingis holds a BA in History with honors from Stony Brook and a law degree from New York University.

Norman MacKillop has 23 years experience as a senior police officer in the Royal Hong Kong Police Force, mainly in the field of organized crime and triads and international narcotic trafficking. His police experience culminated in serving as the Commander of the Anti-Smuggling Task Force, leading police, customs and military personnel investigating and combating Hong Kong-China cross-border smuggling.

MacKillop is a law graduate of Manchester University and a Barrister of Grays Inn London and has been called to the Bar in Hong Kong. After leaving the police in 1996, prior to the handover of Hong Kong sovereignty to China, he spent five years practicing law in England as a Barrister, where he prosecuted and defended in the civil and criminal courts at all levels, including murder, proceeds of crime, international credit card fraud and civil litigation.

MacKillop was appointed Senior Regulatory Inspector of the Alderney Gambling Control Board in 2002, where he was engaged in conducting due diligence investigations of major gaming corporations, assisting in drafting legislation and compliance regulations and providing legal advice to the CEO. He devised an audit program for internet gaming licensees and conducted the first series of compliance audits of that type. He was appointed Director of Investigations for Venetian Macau Ltd. in 2005 and joined Spectrum in July 2007.

MacKillop has resided in Asia for much of the past 30 years and speaks fluent Cantonese. He holds a Masters Degree in Criminal Justice from Exeter University in England, specializing in the study of Chinese Secret Societies and Terrorism.

A management executive with twenty-eight years of experience with the New Jersey Casino Control Commission and an Associate for three years with Spectrum Gaming Group, John Bowman has played a significant role in the regulation of the gaming industry. As Employee License Manager for many years with the Commission in Atlantic City, Bowman’s work has had a direct impact on operating casinos from the very start of gaming in that city.

Bowman had direct experience over the license process and the implementation of internal controls. His duties have involved a close working relationship with and an in-depth knowledge of investigatory systems, casino management and casino organizational structure. He also has considerable experience with regulatory development and an extensive management background that involved long and short term strategic planning and budget analysis. Bowman’s work included the significant use of technology in the regulation of the casino industry.

In his three years with Spectrum Gaming Group, Bowman helped to plan, organize and establish the Pokagon Gaming Commission for the opening of the Four Winds casino in Michigan. He also worked with license authorities in Kansas in preparation for casino openings. He completed reports on the gaming industry in Croatia and Chile, after substantial meetings with both private and government participants in those countries. Bowman also assisted in the gaming industry impact study for the Governor of Massachusetts, reviewing and reporting on the organizational and regulatory structure of gaming agencies across the country.

Bowman currently is the Administrator for the Spectrum Gaming Group Maryland Investigatory Project. His responsibilities include the coordination of investigatory teams from several different companies, the formulation of application and licensing procedures and the recommendation of regulations for the Maryland Lottery Commission.

Stephen Brammell received his undergraduate degree (B.B.A.) from the University of Oklahoma and his law degree (J.D.) from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Upon graduation from Georgetown, he entered private practice with the law firm of Conner & Winters in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he concentrated on corporate law and transactional matters.

Brammell was an attorney with Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. and its predecessor companies, Holiday Corporation and The Promus Companies, until he retired earlier this year. In his most recent position with Harrah’s, he was the Company’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel. As the Company’s chief legal officer and a member of the Company’s senior executive group, he was responsible for overseeing the Company’s legal, regulatory and compliance affairs as well as helping set the strategic direction of the Company.

During his career with Harrah’s, Brammell counseled the company on virtually every major transaction and gaming development project undertaken in the last 20 years. In the course of his work at Harrah’s, his focus was primarily on matters in North America, but he was also involved in the Company’s gaming expansion activities in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and South America.

Brammell now acts as an independent gaming attorney and consultant. He is a member of the IAGA Board of Trustees – a position he has held since his election in 1999.

Formerly a member of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) with twenty-nine years of casino regulatory experience and former Deputy Chief for Regulatory Enforcement, Rich Carretta has been an Associate with Spectrum for a little over nine years.

As deputy chief for regulatory enforcement, Carretta and his staff have developed many cases resulting in significant sanctions against casino operators for compliance failures.

During his career with the DGE, he was selected to assist the New South Wales government of Australia in its first casino opening, presented seminars on casino accounting and internal control, and provided testimony during regulatory legal proceedings.

As an associate with Spectrum, Carretta has conducted operational reviews of several Native American casino operations, assisted in the opening of the Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo, Michigan, developed regulations for the Puerto Rico Board of Tourism, and participated in opening table games operations at West Virginia racetracks.

Patty DiFlorio is a former Manager of the Casino Accounting and Operations Unit of the NJ Casino Control Commission. The Unit is responsible for evaluation of Internal Control Procedures and regulatory compliance for all Atlantic City Casinos on an ongoing basis and during mock openings. The unit also works closely with Commission attorneys to amend and update the NJ Regulations related to Internal Controls, Gaming Equipment and Rules of the Games.

With Spectrum, DiFlorio has worked with West Virginia Government officials in finalizing Minimum Internal Control Standards and led a team in evaluating procedures during various trial openings. She has also done compliance reviews and financial stability evaluations for other jurisdictions.

DiFlorio has been a tax preparer and advisor for 19 years dealing mostly with individual and small business tax returns.

DiFlorio graduated with honors from The College of NJ with a BS in Accounting and is a licensed CPA in the State of NJ.

Jack Julian began his career with the US Marine Corps where he provided security for President Eisenhower at the Pentagon. He then became a US Treasury Special Agent and worked with Secret Service providing security to President Johnson. After that, he held the positions of Inspector, Senior Inspector, Principal Inspector and then Chief Inspector at the NJ Casino Control Commission. Julian participated in the openings of 12 Atlantic City Casinos. As an associate with Spectrum Gaming Group, Julian evaluated all casinos in San Juan Puerto Rico; opened an Indian Casino in Michigan; opened three casinos in West Virginia; and has trained inspectors in both slots and table games. Julian received a GAA Degree from Monmouth University. He graduated from the University of Florida, Miami Florida with BA Degree in accounting, and completed graduate work at Ohio University.