While America has always been described as a melting pot, this isn’t something I truly appreciated until moving to Las Vegas. Almost immediately after arriving in the desert oasis, I began noticing the distinct blend of cultures that bring the city to life.
After signing on to join the ranks of a downtown marketing department, it quickly became evident that hundreds of cultures were represented by different team members to create a dynamic, and often educational, experience.
Soon after starting, I began to build up rapports with various people that worked in all sorts of departments. Because I was friendly and treated everyone with equal respect, I soon became an office desk that people wanted to swing by to have a chat. One team member, Yadira, would start to bring me different things to try including what would become my favorite- pupusas. Until the pandemic threw a wrench in our plans, Yadira and I would exchange snacks, stories, and pictures of our families.
Another team member that I hit it off with was Daniel (Danny) Leath, someone I came to find out is from my neck of the woods on the East Coast. Perhaps it was because my dad worked in security and served as a police officer growing up, but I instantly recognized that Danny was one of the “helpers,” always willing to lend a hand when a coworker needed it, and became someone I could count on if I needed security assistance on a project.
Danny is the first person we are highlighting in a new series called “Casino Careers.” We will be sharing stories from around the casino, within the titles of various manufacturer positions, and even some stops in between.
Daniel, or Danny as some coworkers and his friends call him, is originally from New York, having been born in the Bronx and raised in Huntington Station. Danny is so New York, that he was actually one of the city’s finest- a New York City police officer.
After moving to Las Vegas in 1997, the once NYPD officer began to serve the City of Henderson for nearly thirteen years in a variety of roles including patrol officer, computer forensic expert, training officer, and dedicated member of the SWAT team.
In 2010, Danny experienced a shift in careers, moving away from serving on a police force to embark on a new journey in the casino industry. The seasoned safety professional’s first casino job came as acting as an on-call security officer for The M Resort Spa Casino. He shortly after signed on to lend his talents to The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas that had just recently broken ground as a security agent. Danny proved he was more than able to walk the walk in addition to talking the talk. He worked his way up the chain of command eventually becoming the Grave Shift Supervisor and, lastly, Security Learning and Development Manager. In that role, Danny was responsible “for creating and implementing Security Policy and Training in all areas of Security Operations.”
Like with most jobs, change is inevitable. After The Cosmopolitan was acquired by Blackstone, Danny took the shake up as an opportunity to leverage his experience to gain a position with The Golden Nugget Las Vegas. For Danny, it was about more than just advancing his career, he would be given the chance to work with who he calls “two of my greatest mentors.” Those mentors were Nicholas Jacobitz, who at the time was The Golden Nugget’s Director of Security, and Cindy O’Keefe, the property’s Senior Vice President of the Hotel and Assistant General Manager.
Like at The Cosmo, Danny was once again quick to make a name for himself. He started in October of 2014 and was soon promoted to Assistant Director. In 2017, Danny’s mentor Nick left to start his own business and Danny was again promoted, this time to Director of Security. This was a position that Danny held until 2022.
With decades of experience in the industry under his belt, Danny can’t put his finger on one specific favorite memory. Instead, what sticks out to him most are the people and relationships he has made along the way. He explains, “Everyone who helped me learn and mentored me. Everyone who worked for me and later advanced through the ranks or was hired by Law Enforcement, the Fire Department, or EMS, etc. Those are the memories that stick with me.”
While I didn’t work with Danny as closely as most, I have similar things to say about him. I instantly felt comfortable around him, in part because he reminded me of my dad who also worked his way up through the security ranks. As cliche as it sounds, people remember how you treat them. Despite being brand new to the industry, Danny always took time to explain things to me and even invited my dad to come to property for a tour. I also appreciated knowing the whole security squad was just down the hall… even if that meant they would constantly catch me propping doors.
Like my relationship with Yadira, COVID cut my time with Danny and the rest of the Golden Nugget team short. I still get sad thinking about how I wish Danny was the one who could have walked me out when I got laid off (the second time) but that is a story for a different day.
As for advice on how to break into the casino security field? Danny shoots it straight, “Don’t do drugs.” He goes on to elaborate that while marijuana is legal in many places, including Las Vegas, when you want to land a job in security that is still tested for. If a security candidate tests positive for marijuana during their pre-work screening, there is a high chance you will not get hired and will be removed entirely from the onboarding process.
You can take Danny’s advice plus some tips on how to land a job in the casino industry here. If you have suggestions on casino career profiles, let us know in the comments!
