Kentucky Internet Gambling Ruling Set For October 15

Kentucky Judge Thomas Wingate will rule next Wednesday, October 15th on the Governor’s ploy to seize 141 internet gambling domain names in the Commonwealth.

In case you haven’t been following this story (I first covered it on September 26; check out my blog entry for that date), Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear seized 141 internet gambling domains, including those belonging to several major online poker rooms such as Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and others. This triggered some complex legal actions that center on the Commonwealth’s jurisdiction—or lack of it—to seize domain names. Also at issue is whether the URLs in question can be forfeited because they are “gambling devices” according to Kentucky law.

Interestingly enough, TwinSpires.com was not among the 141 internet gambling domains, even though the site is available in Kentucky. Although licensed in Oregon, TwinSpires.com is owned by Kentucky-based Churchill Downs Incorporated (pictured left). This prompted questions about why TwinSpires.com was omitted from the list of 141 offending sites, especially since TwinSpires’ website claims horse racing and poker are similar in nature: “Just like poker, you are not playing against the house. You are playing against the rest of the people wagering on racing; the better your strategy, the more you can win.”

Jim Waters, Director of Policy and Communications for the Bluegrass Institute, commented, “The Governor tried to slip this upon the Kentucky people, but failed when our coalition stood up in Frankfort and openly opposed using the force of government to trample on the rights and liberties of the people.”