A request by video poker machine operators to postpone the first phase of a ban on video poker in North Carolina has been denied by Superior Court Judge Narley Cashwell today. 

The North Carolina Amusement Association had originally requested that Cashwell issue a temporary restraining order to prevent the first stage of a video poker phase-out, which is set to take effect this weekend, while they are still challenging the legality of the ban in court. The group had  filed a suit two weeks ago, questioning the constitutionality of the law approved by the General Assembly last June. The ban was passed partly due to the urging of sheriffs and state law enforcement agencies which argued that commercial video poker machines lead to crime and corruption.

The association members have countered that the ban is unconstitutional, in part because the state has entered into the gambling business with its “educational lottery� and therefore can’t have a monopoly. “The attorney general says the law is good public policy,� said the plaintiffs’ attorney, Gene Boyce “Our position is that driving people out of business is not good public policy. Everybody else, including the state, can engage in games of chance, but my clients are criminals if they continue to do so in disobedience to this new law,� Boyce added.     

Cashwell heard arguments from attorneys representing both the association and the state for less than half an hour in a closed-door meeting in his office yesterday. On Thursday afternoon the judge refused the group’s request according to North Carolina Department of Justice spokesperson, Noelle Talley.  “The court finds that (the) plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that they are likely to sustain immediate and irreparable harm, or that they are likely to prevail on the merits of the case,� Cashwell wrote.  

Boyce, who is representing approximately 100 businesses, said he planned to seek a hearing on a preliminary injunction soon because he feels that his clients stand to lose out on a lot of revenue when the law goes into effect on Sunday.

-Ryan Wallace

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 28th, 2006 at 10:17 pm and is filed under Poker, Legal Issues. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.