The U.S. Justice Department reverses policy to legalize online gambling in the state

The Justice Department on Friday gave American online gamblers Christmas gifts when individual states said they had the power to authorize and regulate non-sports-related online gambling in the state. The legal opinion released by the Justice Department came in response to inquiries from New York and Illinois about online lottery sales and letters from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Senator John Kyle (D-Ariz.) seeking clarification on the legitimacy of online gaming.

For years, the Department of Justice has argued that the Wire Act prohibits all forms of online gambling. However, in a letter to Reed and Kyle, the Department of Justice announced that it was adjusting its position after the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) reviewed the law. “The Wire Act only applies to the transmission of information that helps you place bets or bets related to sporting events or games,” wrote Deputy Attorney General Ronald Weitch.

“Since state lotteries in New York and Illinois are not related to sporting events, the OLC concluded that the operations of these lotteries will not be in violation of the law,” Weich added. After addressing the lottery issue, Weich turned his attention to other forms of online games, including online poker. “In addition, in states that prohibit various forms of gambling, including Internet poker, departments may be able to investigate and prosecute such gambling businesses under the Illegal Internet Gambling Enforcement Act and other provisions of the Criminal Code,” Weich wrote. 바카라

“Of course, if Congress wants to give the federal government greater enforcement powers over non-sports-related internet gambling, it can do so by amending the landline law.” The OLC memo on landline law written by Deputy Attorney General Virginia Seitz was dated Sept. 20, 2011. It did not provide an explanation as to why it was released only today.

The online gaming industry’s response was swift when letters to Reid and Kyle and the accompanying legal input entered the public domain. “This is a much-needed explanation for the old and often confusing law,” said John Pappas, executive director of the Poker Players Association. “For years, legal scholars and even courts have debated whether Internet poker applies to non-sports activities. Today’s announcement proves that Internet poker does not violate this law.”

“This will provide state and federal policymakers with legal confidence to proceed with licensing and regulation of online poker and other non-sports activities within their respective jurisdictions,” Pappas added. “However, our hope is that our federal policymakers see this as an incentive to move quickly to enact federal licensing and regulation before a mix of individual state plans that may not be the best model for serving consumers in multiple states.”