Internet Poker:New Jersey Fights DoJ

The U.S Attorney General is kindly reminded of state rights pertaining to internet gambling.

In reply to a note send last week by new partners, Congressmen Harry Reid and Jon Kyl to the United States Attorney General, Eric Holder requested that the Department of Justice (DoJ) refute the efforts by various states to legalize intrastate online gambling.

Holder claims gambling over the Internet breaches federal law. In reply to Holder’s verbal attack on internet gambling New Jersey Sen. Ray Lesniak reminded the Attorney General of the states’ rights by imposing legislation on activities within individual states.

The two politicians’ effort to pave the way for federally approved legislation in future, Sen. Lesniak in his letter insisted that New Jersey “…must not be influenced in any way from exercising its rights under state constitution and as well as federal law.”

He also said that under the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), intrastate Internet gambling is allowed, quoting: “The term ‘unlawful Internet gambling’ excludes placing, receiving, or otherwise transmitting a bet or wager where…the bet or wager is initiated and received or otherwise made exclusively within a single State.”

He also said that “intermediate routing” of Internet network traffic across state lines by Internet service providers does not violate the UIGEA nor the Wire Act, since the UIGEA clearly stipulates that intermediate routing does not affect the location of the bet, and the reason for the Wire Act was to knee halter criminal organizations using telecommunications to carry out illegal interstate sports betting, and was not intended for state-licensed and regulated intrastate gaming.

To conclude, Sen. Lesniak’s letter reads as follow: “Had you accepted Sens. Reid and Kyl’s letter on based on merit, you must also prosecute the Nevada Gaming Board, since it approved sports betting via mobile Internet this year on condition it takes place within the state of Nevada’s borders. Nevada also permitted other modes of Internet and remote gambling such as casino games, poker and sports by Nevada firms such as Las Vegas Sands and Station Casinos.

“In line with the above, New Jersey and 37 other states must also be prosecuted for allowing internet wagering on horse races, which has existed for years.”