At to the lowest degree ane Alabama River casino isn’t giving up its legal scrap to defend its electronic bingo games. That’s after the state’s Supreme Court ruled that the machines comprise illegal gambling.
In a unanimous 7-0 determination published late cobbler's last month, the Alabama Supreme Court sided with nation Attorney General Steve George Catlett Marshall (R). He believes that the electronic bingo machines operating inward Macon and Lowndes counties are prohibited past res publica law.
Voters inwards those two counties 25 years agone passed local ordinances allowing good-hearted gaming. Both counties are among the state’s poorest in terms of medial household income.
Attorneys representing Victoryland, an electronic bingo casino inward the townspeople of Shorter inward Macon, said the royal court ruling will outcome inward the county’s largest employer beingness forced to lay off workers. The casino also claims that the many charities its bingo machines financial backing will also make up the cost of the Supreme Margaret Court verdict.
The Stanford White Charles Martin Hall Entertainment Center in Patrick Victor Martindale White Marguerite Radclyffe Hall and Southern Star Entertainment Center inward Hayneville — both in Lowndes — are also wedged by the high courtroom ruling.
Plea for Reconsideration
Alabama does non grant commercial message casino play or tribal casinos with Las Vegas-style expansion slot machines, tabularize games, or sports betting. Only the Poarch Band of Creek Indians are de jure allowed below federal and nation laws to control Class i and II gaming, which includes bingo-based games, on their supreme lands.
The Alabama Supreme Margaret Court set that the good-hearted gaming existence played at the threesome commercial-grade electronic bingo parlors inwards Macon and Lowndes are essentially illegal one-armed bandit machines. Victoryland’s legal denial team up has requested that the court of law reconsider its conclusion and not race to a judgment.
Victoryland respectfully requests the chance to live heard by the Court on its motion to poke out the clip for the ledger entry of preliminary injunction, which is warranted given the wicked and catastrophic wallop that testament rate of flow from the Court’s Opinion,” the practical application pleaded.
The bingo cassino says it regularly supports 75 charities, including schools, churches, and foremost responders. Victoryland also claims gaming at its prop benefits county and urban center resources, including the Tuskegee Area Chamber of Commerce, Tuskegee Housing Authority, and Macon County Health Care Authority.
Bingo Machine Misnomer
Marshall contends that the bingo terminals at the gambling casino and entertainment centers should be called slot machines.
Under the electric current jurisprudence of Alabama, in that respect is no such thing as electronic bingo. These inwards fact are one-armed bandit machines, and expansion slot machines are illegal below AL law,” George Marshall said previously.
In its September ruling, the AL Supreme Court agreed with Marshall. The royal court opined that Victoryland, Patrick White Hall, and Southern Star tender guests “illegal gambling activities.”
In its ruling, the province Supreme Court ordered lour electric circuit courts to necessitate the troika businesses cease their electronic gaming machines within 30 days. Victoryland’s plea for rethink includes asking the court of law to give a stay on of its Sept ruling through at least Christmas.