The sheriffs of Burke, Caldwell and Catawba counties have formed the Tri-County Task Force on Gambling and Vice to combat what they say are rampant problems with illegal machines.
Catawba County Sheriff David Huffman, with Caldwell County Sheriff Gary Clark and Burke County Sheriff John McDevitt, announced the initiative Tuesday.
The task force will start with three full-time officers who will work undercover to crack down on operation of illegal machines in the Hickory area.
Video poker, banned in South Carolina in 2000, is legal in North Carolina, but there are several restrictions. Operators must register machines with authorities, and N.C. law limits jackpots to $10, redeemable in merchandise only.
But many law enforcement officers, including those leading the Hickory-area task force, contend the machines often make cash payouts, sometimes in amounts as large as $1,000.
More than 600 machines operate in Burke, Caldwell and Catawba counties, Huffman said. The sheriffs said the majority of those operate illegally.
The sheriffs say they're concerned video poker is addictive and that some players are blowing entire paychecks, even savings, on the machines. "This is preying on people that have a problem," Clark said.
McDevitt received a visit about 18 months ago from members of a Sunday school class who were concerned that one of the class members had lost everything she owned playing video poker, he said.
The sheriffs want lawmakers to ban video poker, they said Tuesday. The N.C. Senate has voted to outlaw the machines, but the House has yet to go along. The sheriffs will continue to lobby for a ban, Huffman said.
"From day one," McDevitt said, "they have been nothing but a headache and a nightmare."
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