Finally, a court in Alabama has ruled that the computerized devices used for gambling as electronic bingo machines are nothing more than slot machines.
That’s been the consensus of some prosecutors, former Gov. Bob Riley and the heavy handed Task Force on Illegal Gambling he put together in the waning months of his term. But, until now, no court had definitively ruled that the devices met the criteria for slot machines – which are illegal in Alabama – and did not meet the requirements for bingo, which is legal in several Alabama counties, including Houston County.
In Jefferson County Circuit Court, Presiding Judge Scott Vowell ruled in five cases that machines confiscated were slot machines playing a game that did not meet the characteristics of bingo set forth in a 2010 state Supreme Court ruling.
Don’t expect this to be the final word. It is a start, however; there will likely be an appeal filed to kick the can down the road, but there may eventually be a definitive ruling that puts an end to this divisive controversy.
It’s a shame that it has come to this. There is no doubt that, when presented with referenda on constitutional amendments to approve bingo in various counties around the state, voters considered bingo played in the manner in which it has been traditionally played. It’s a sure bet that no one had ever heard of “electronic bingo” and had certainly never imagined that the approval of bingo would lead to the construction of casinos in their back yards.
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