|
 Judge
Upholds Washington
State Online Poker
Law
Play
online poker in
Washington State and
you could risk
facing a few years
in prison on Class C
felony charges.
These are the same
charges reserved for
child molesters and
repeat drunk driving
offenders. And
nothing will change
heading into Friday
May 16 as a King
County judge upheld
a state law that
bans online poker.
Lee
Rousso had argued
that the 2006 law,
which made Internet
gambling a felony,
violates the U.S.
Constitution's
commerce clause and
is cruel and unusual
punishment,
according to a
report in the
Seattle Post
Intelligencer.
After the hearing,
he relayed Superior
Court Judge Mary
Roberts' decision to
roughly 70
disappointed poker
enthusiasts gathered
for a rally outside
the Maleng Regional
Justice Center in
Kent.
"That's just the way
the game is played,"
said Rousso, an
attorney. "The court
of law is probably
the biggest casino
there is."
"There is virtually
no public support
for this law," he
told the
Seattle Times.
He said he expects
the issue ultimately
to be decided by the
U.S. Supreme Court.
Rousso had
previously dropped
his bid to run for
Governor of
Washington State
late last year.
He
said the law was
hypocritical and
blatantly
discriminatory
toward the
brick-and-mortar
card rooms and
lotteries authorized
and licensed by the
state
Rousso said he
doubted that all the
legislators who
voted for the 2006
statute revision
criminalizing online
gambling were fully
aware of what they
doing.
"Do you really want
to throw people in
prison who want to
play poker?" Rousso
asked.
-----
Christopher
Costigan,
Gambling911.com
Publisher
CCostigan@CostiganMedia.com
Originally published
May 16, 2008 12:06
am EST
|
