Still a would-be felon

2Tone · #1 09-24-10, 11:48 AM

Sigh.

The state Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that the state's ban on Internet gambling doesn't run afoul of the U.S. Constitution's protections of interstate trade.

Thursday's ruling upholds a King County Superior Court decision against Renton lawyer Lee Rousso and his challenge of the 2006 state law that makes online gambling a felony.

Talking Poker · #2 09-26-10, 01:09 AM

Yeah, it's pretty sucky. I think it will go to the U.S. Supreme Court and probably be upheld there too, TBH.

My interpretation of this ruling was that while the Judge may even agree that the law is ridiculous (there was some language in his ruling that suggested this), it isn't unconstitutional and therefore there is nothing he can do about it. The best process would be to get a new law on the books to overturn this stupid one. Time to get some new blood in office.

Kurn · #3 09-26-10, 08:04 AM

Unfortunately, the only way for this law to be unconstitutional would be for at least one State to legalize online poker (by that I mean to legally allow an online site to be hosted in the State). If that were to happen, then the WA law would clearly violate the Interstate Commerce clause. For now, since the sites are offshore, it doesn't fit the definition of interstate commerce.

Of course, that might not even help, as there is a long history of the feds ignoring the Constitution. Two obvious examples are The Defense of Marriage Act which clearly violates the Full Faith and Credit clause, and (going back farther) the stipulation that Utah ban plural marriage as a condition of Statehood which clearly violates the Separation Clause of Amendment I.

<constitutional rant off>