In a groundbreaking legal battle, the State of Texas faces off against gambling machines in a case that could set a precedent for the future of such devices in the jurisdiction. The hearing, presided over by the 336th District Judge in Fannin County, marks the first time a Texas court is deciding the legality of these devices.

Skill Games Remain a Contentious Topic in Many Jurisdictions

Texas law explicitly forbids chance-based gambling machines. However, skill-based games circumvent existing restrictions and remain permitted despite their similarities. The legal scrutiny follows a county-wide seizure of gambling machines in March last year, impacting several locations. Fannin County District Attorney Richard Glaser and local law enforcement initiated the seizure, contending that the machines violated Texas gambling regulations.

A recent report by media outlet KXII revealed that the central question in this hearing was whether the 35 confiscated machines were skill-based or chance-based. Glaser firmly believes these machines operate on chance, making them illegal. If successful, the state plans to seize the machines and their proceeds. Such a move could also lead to more seizures, making business owners reluctant to invest in these devices.

These look like gambling machines, they play like gambling machines. We wanted to seize them all at one time.

Richard Glaser, Fannin County District Attorney

This ongoing legal battle mirrors a similar case in Pennsylvania, where a recent court decision deemed that skill games were legal. The decision caused significant backlash from the gambling sector, which claims that these devices, exempt from gaming taxes and oversight, threatened regulated operators and posed a danger to the public due to non-existent player protection measures.

The Machines Circumvent Existing Laws

While Pace-O-Matic, the company behind the devices, asserts that its games have been deemed legal in other parts of Texas, this hearing is the first instance of a court making a definitive decision. Joe Brown, a member of Pace-O-Matic’s counsel, argues that the games were meticulously designed to comply with Texas law and are, in fact, skill-based.

The skillful player can win every time that they play, and that takes it out of the definition of a gambling device.

Joe Brown, counsel for Pace-O-Matic

As the debate neared its conclusion, Fannin County District Judge Laurine Blake ruled that the game devices were skill-based and legal. She will be issuing an order for the return of seized property. This landmark decision could potentially impact similar machines across the state, setting a crucial precedent for the future of gambling devices in Texas.

Although the hearing has not concluded, the ruling signals a likely victory for skill games. Similar cases across the USA highlight the need for proper regulation. Treating them similarly to slot machines would solve most issues, bringing them out of the legal grey area and ensuring jurisdictions can collect taxes and enforce proper control.

The post Skill-Based Machines Set to Win Landmark Hearing in Texas appeared first on Keno Wizard.

Sports betting powerhouse DraftKings is under fire in Massachusetts over depositing violations. The operator is now facing an adjudicatory hearing in the state.

As it turns out, DraftKings had accidentally allowed its users to use out-of-state credit cards to fuel their accounts, in violation of Massachusetts’ gambling rules. For reference, no gambling operators in the state can accept credit cards as a payment method.

DraftKings self-reported the issue to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) in May this year. According to the operator, the mistake had allowed customers to bet with credit cards from March 10.

As a result, DraftKings implemented a tool that prevents the use of credit cards on its platform. However, it wasn’t until July 13 that DraftKings finally got the measure working properly. As a result, a total of 218 players used credit cards to place a total of 242 bets totaling $83,663.92 between March and July.

DraftKings told the MGC that the incident was due to an internal miscommunication. The operator also attributed its failure to get the necessary software working to the persistence of these alleged miscommunications.

The company explained that it had to introduce changes to three internal functions before being able to get the credit card prohibition underway. These included changes to its financial platform, account platform and sportsbook product.

MGC commissioner Eileen O’Brien commented on the matter, saying that she believes DraftKings’ negligence is egregious. O’Brien added that “this needs to be an adjudicatory hearing.” The other commissioners agreed. MGC commissioners said that this is the first instance of such a severe credit card-related violation. Because of that, the authority seeks to prioritize the matter.

This is not the only trouble DraftKings faces in The Bay State as it recently came under fire over a misleading promotion. The operator had promised a non-redeemable $1,000 bonus but had failed to clearly communicate that players would need to deposit $5,000 and wager $25,000 within 90 days to be eligible to receive the bonus.

Because of that, the company was hit with a class-action lawsuit led by the Public Health Advocacy Institute.

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The hearing between Andy Sanborn, the owner of the Concord Casino and former New Hampshire Senator, and the Lottery Commission was delayed for the second time recently. The latest delay comes after Sanborn’s defense claimed that he was too ill to effectively defend against the accusations that he spent COVID-19 relief funds for personal expenses.

As announced by The Concord Monitor, Sanborn’s lawyer, Zachary Hafer, recently confirmed that his client was very sick. “We’re also dealing with lots of medical appointments and side effects from medical appointments. I’d rather not get into the specific details, but he’s very sick, very, very sick,” he explained.

Additionally, Hafer pointed out that he was new to his client’s case and needed more time to familiarize himself with the details. He cited extensive information and documents that are tied to the investigation against his client, asking for a postponement of two months.

“We are asking for two months, which is about a quarter of the time that the investigation took. We think that’s really reasonable here. We think that it would afford a process in which we can defend these charges.“

Zachary Hafer, an attorney representing Andy Sanborn

The latest delay marks the second time the hearing between Sanborn and the Commission has been pushed back. The investigation against the former Senator comes ahead of his gaming operator license expiration set for December 31, 2023. According to the investigation against him, he was unsuitable to hold a license in New Hampshire. Even if Sanborn is found unsuitable to hold a license in the state after the hearing with the Commission, he may appeal that decision with the Supreme Court.

Using COVID Relief Funds for Personal Expenses

An eight-month-long investigation against the former Senator uncovered that he allegedly obtained $844,000 in federal COVID-19 relief funds fraudulently. Accusations against him claim that the money was used for a lavish lifestyle, including purchasing expensive sports cars for himself and Laurie Sanborn, his wife. He allegedly concealed personal expenses as business transactions, transferring some $183,500 into his personal accounts.

The established regulations do not allow casinos to benefit from COVID relief funds. Yet, the investigation claims that Sanborn concealed the identity of his company and instead of Concord Casino, filed the application with the name Win Win Win LLC. According to the investigation, the activity of his business was described as miscellaneous.

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