Is Online Poker Illegal In Us
- Is Online Poker Illegal In The Us
- Is Online Poker Still Illegal In The Us
- Is Online Gambling Illegal In Us
Up until 2011 The DOJ’s interpretation of the 1961 Wire Act (first officially entered in 2002) effectively made online poker illegal in the US. That changed when, at the urging of Illinois and New York, the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel reexamined the Wire Act, and concluded its scope is limited to sports betting. One of the frustrating urban legends borne of Black Friday is that playing online poker is perfectly legal; it is merely site operators and banks handling monetary transfers that are running afoul.
CBS News program “60 Minutes,” which aired on Sunday night, claimed on multiple occasions that online poker was illegal in the United States. Near the top of the show, correspondent Steve Kroft narrated, “We should tell you that this $18 billion industry is illegal in the U.S.” However, is that really the case? Is online poker really illegal? Poker News Daily sat down with gambling law expert Professor I. Nelson Rose to discuss the legality of online poker.
Interestingly, Rose noted that the producers of the popular Sunday night program called him in order to ask his interpretation of whether online poker is legal. He told Poker News Daily, “I thought I made it clear to them. You can’t say for sure that online poker is illegal. There are too many variables. The show gave the false impression that it’s a crime to play poker when in fact in probably half of the states, you’re not committing any crime at all.”
Certain states such as Washington have laws on the books against playing online poker. In the case of the Pacific Northwest state, taking to the felts of an online poker room is a Class C felony, one of the harshest penalties and the equivalent of rape, according to the Washington Post. In Kentucky, Governor Steve Beshear is in the midst of trying to eradicate internet gambling by seizing 141 industry domain names unless the owners of the sites agree to block Kentucky residents. Recently, Ultimate Bet, Absolute Poker, Cake Poker, and the Merge Gaming Network have done just that. The Microgaming Network originally blocked new Kentucky residents, but has since left the U.S. market entirely.
The idea that online poker is illegal in the United States may have come from the U.S. Department of Justice. Rose stated, “The Justice Department has taken the position that cross-border betting is illegal, which also means that interstate horse racing is illegal. You can’t just talk to a prosecutor who is waging a war of intimidation and then quote them [on 60 Minutes].”
The Wire Act of 1961 states that anyone who “knowingly uses a wire communication facility for the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of bets or wagers or information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers on any sporting event or contest” is breaking the law. Also illegal under the Act is “the transmission of a wire communication which entitles the recipient to receive money or credit as a result of bets or wagers, or for information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers.”
Rose commented that court cases involving the Wire Act have historically focused on sports betting, not on online poker: “The most important cases have held that the Wire Act only applies to sports betting. The cases have involved online casinos and online lotteries, which would indicate that it does not apply to internet poker.” In a recent House Financial Services Committee hearing, Chairman Barney Frank stated that the legality of betting on horse racing over the internet, for example, “depended on which department you asked.”
In the Washington Post newspaper article that accompanied the 60 Minutes piece, columnist Gilbert Gaul stated, “At least one federal judge has ruled that the 47-year-old law applies only to sports bets, while several legal scholars have argued that it was never intended to include online poker or other games of skill.” Jay Cohen, who was the founder of the World Sports Exchange, was charged with conspiracy to violate the Wire Act.
Rose sums up his thoughts on the legality of online poker within the borders of the United States: “There is no chance of being prosecuted if you’re a player. If you’re a company, you might be violating the law.” Many industry groups including the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) and the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative (SSIGI) have been actively pushing for the legalization and regulation of the industry, which would clear up any ambiguity that may exist as to whether online poker is permissible.
Thousands of Americans gamble online. But is online gambling legal? We break it down to show you what you can do, what you can't do, and what's still up in the air.
Is Online Poker Illegal In The Us
by Katherine Butler
updated September 03, 2020 · 2min read
The legality of online gambling is ever-changing. But one thing is constant: it makes a lot of money. Online gambling industry makes an estimated $1 billion dollars annually. This is a huge business, and a lot of people have cashed in on it. But it has led to some ambiguous legal issues, as the legality of online gambling is constantly being challenged.
There are differences in the legality of making bets, taking bets, facilitating payments to casinos, and advertising on websites. And there are constantly new legal challenges. So here is a breakdown of the law on online gambling.
Legal Forms of Gambling
There is no federal law against placing a wager online. So, you can legally place a bet online. However, a wager must not be placed on a site located in the United States. There is a small chance players might run afoul of state law, but there is little chance of prosecution. The only case cited where a person got into trouble with a state was in 2003. Jeffrey Trauman of North Dakota paid a $500 fine on over $100,000 of online sports bet winnings.
Sites that are set up outside of the United States are legal. Therefore, gambling on websites located in areas like Australia, the Caribbean, and Latin America is legal. Just be very clear that the site you are playing on is not based on U.S. soil.
Definitely Not Legal Forms of Gambling
It is never legal to gamble on a website based in the United States. Also, if you are planning to operate an online gambling site, stay outside of the United States. You must also deal only with casino and poker wagers (not sports bets) from people in the US. And you cannot take bets over the phone from people in the United States.
Accepting online gambling advertising is also illegal. If you are a small publisher, you are less likely to be prosecuted, but why risk it? As of early 2009, only large and mid-size publishers had faced prosecution. In 2007, the three big search engines (Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft) each paid a fine for accepting online gambling ads, but did not face criminal charges. Other publishers, such as Esquire Magazine, have been warned by the government not to take online gambling advertising.
Facilitating the transfer of funds to online casinos is also a bad idea. As of 2006, it became illegal for American banks to process transactions originating from or directed toward any online gambling operator. Because of this, several sites then refused to take bets from American players. But as the law seems difficult to enforce, it has not turned the tide completely for American players.
Still up in the Air
Is Online Poker Still Illegal In The Us
Advertisers who promote sports books in magazines and on billboards may or may not face prosecution. So far, sports books have never been scrutinized for advertising online. And online casinos, poker rooms, and sports books have never been prosecuted for buying ads.
Is Online Gambling Illegal In Us
Online casinos and operators still accept American players. And international financial parties have continued to process their transactions. The legality is always changing and there have been attempts to declare online wagering against the law, but for now, U.S. citizens who simply place bets online are in the clear.