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Watchdog named to head Pa. gaming board

HARRISBURG - A top official in the state attorney general's office was picked Friday to be chairman of the state Gaming Control Board, as Gov. Corbett selected a career prosecutor from a law enforcement agency that has spent considerable time investigating the board.

HARRISBURG - A top official in the state attorney general's office was picked Friday to be chairman of the state Gaming Control Board, as Gov. Corbett selected a career prosecutor from a law enforcement agency that has spent considerable time investigating the board.

Bill Ryan was Corbett's top deputy when the Republican governor was state attorney general. A former two-term Delaware County district attorney, Ryan also spent four months this year as acting attorney general after Corbett became governor in January.

It was during Ryan's term as acting attorney general that the office issued a scathing, 102-page grand jury report that recounted the political calculations necessary to legalize casino-style gambling, criticized the board's use of secret meetings and suggested the agency awarded licenses to unsuitable applicants.

It also issued a range of recommendations on how it said the gaming board should change to better serve the public interest rather than the interests of casino operators.

"Bill's proven integrity and more than three decades of experience as a prosecutor will serve him well as the new chairman of the gaming control board," Corbett said in a statement.

The two-year grand jury probe began under Corbett's term as attorney general.