Referring to the laws under which it prosecutes, including the
controversial 1961 Act, Justice Department spokeswoman Jacqueline
Lesch told OUT-LAW: "They include language about a wire
communication facility which we believe includes the internet. They
are dated but they cover online gambling."
Two UK businessmen have been arrested in the US in recent weeks
in connection with internet gambling. Betonsports chief executive
David Carruthers and Sportingbet chairman Peter Dicks were arrested
at US airports when they landed. Carruthers's case is being handled
by the DoJ, while Dicks may be prosecuted under state laws by the
state of Louisiana.
The latest edition of OUT-LAW Radio
looks into the confused legal status of online gambling in the US.
"It is certainly very confused because they are relying on statutes
that date back to the 1960s and you have the added complication of
states interpreting them in different ways," said John Hagan, a
lawyer at gambling law specialist firm Harris Hagan. "Certainly I'm
confused and no doubt the online gambling operators are equally
confused and when you're talking about the risk of criminal
penalties and being arrested in transit through the states it's not
a very satisfactory state of affairs."
"We don't think it is confusing," the Justice Department's Lesch
told OUT-LAW. "We think it contravenes three statutes, the Wire
Act, the Travel Act and the Illegal Gambling Businesses Act. This
has long been a concern of the DoJ."
Many legal observers question the use of the 1961 Act to
prosecute individuals for using technology and services that were
not invented when the Act was written. "They are certainly taking a
very strong view of outdated legislation and applying an
interpretation for their own purposes," said Hagan.
A new law which would outlaw all internet gambling has passed
through the House of Representatives in the US but has not yet
passed through the Senate. Most observers believe that it will not
be passed. "The chances of it actually passing through the Senate
are quite low," said Wayne Brown, an analyst at Altium Securities
who follows online gambling firms. "The same bill has in various
other forms been tried to pass over the last few years."
The DoJ spokeswoman said that it intended to continue
prosecuting under existing laws. "When the evidence allows, we will
continue," she said.
