PITTSBURGH -- Detroit has had casino gambling for 4 years and many Pittsburghers travel there.

Target 11 consumer investigator Becky Thompson traveled to Detroit and looked at the social impact of casino gambling in Detroit.

One of the biggest arguments against casino gaming -- or any gambling -- is the toll it can take on peoples' lives. It is said to increase debt and sometimes despair to the point where some have committed suicide -- even homicide.

CasinoWatch.org is a Web site that keeps track of the tragedies across the country.

It's estimated that 10 to 15 percent of casino customers have problems caused by gambling, and 5 percent develop a gambling addiction that affects all aspects of their lives, according to the site.

After the Motor City Casino opened in Detroit, one gambler went over the edge while playing a high-stake game of cards.

"From what we understand he lost a hand then pulled out the weapon and shot himself," William Rice, of the Detroit police department, said.

Months later, a man in suburban Detroit killed himself, his pregnant wife and three children.

In a note, he attributed his problems to hundreds of thousands of dollars of gambling debt -- a habit relatives say he started 4 years earlier.

That's just about how long experts say it takes a gambling addict to reach the end of the line.

After a winning phase of 1 to 3 years, gamblers enter a losing phase and begin draining savings and assets. Finally, a desperation phase occurs where 90-percent of gamblers resort to crime, according to the Council on Compulsive Gambling of N.J.

In Detroit, financial crimes related to casino gambling have soared from 11 cases in 1999 to 237 last year. Charges ranged from credit card theft to manufacturing fake checks to embezzlement.

Detroit has some of the highest bankruptcy filings in the country, as do most areas with casinos.

"Some people just go in and play, play, play. They don't mind losing," Sheila Ivory, a gambler and pawn customer, said.

Pawn brokers Target 11 talked to in Detroit say casinos have done more harm than good.

They say fewer customers are returning to get their merchandise, using the money instead for gambling.

What's the message to those considering casinos in Pittsburgh?

"When you introduce gaming you have to understand there's going to be social ills. It's your hope that those positive gains you get from gaming will outweigh the social ills," Dan Gustafson, of the Michigan Gaming Commission, said.

"I think we can learn that we need hardnosed deals up front that are based on an awareness of what the consequences are of gambling," Detroit city council president, Maryanne Mahaffey, said.