With the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) now just one week away, Poker News Daily sat down with Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) Chairman Joe Brennan to discuss the future of online poker in Kentucky and Minnesota.
iMEGA must file its brief in the Kentucky case by June 1st. The squabble surrounds the seizure and potential forfeiture of 141 internet gambling domain names, including those belonging to industry giants PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker. Brennan told Poker News Daily that iMEGA’s brief will likely be filed before the June 1st deadline and hit the Kentucky Supreme Court’s desk sometime next week. A bevy of amicus briefs have also been submitted from organizations like eBay, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Center for Democracy and Technology, the American Civil Liberties Union, Network Solutions, and the Poker Players Alliance. iMEGA’s brief has been completed for two months. Brennan explained the logic in waiting to submit it: “We sat on it because we didn’t feel the need to give Commonwealth attorneys more time than necessary. They’ll get a chance to submit a rebuttal brief.”
In January, the Kentucky Court of Appeals overturned a lower court’s ruling and found that the Commonwealth did not have jurisdiction to seize the 141 domain names in question. The case has the potential to set considerable precedence regardless of how the Kentucky Supreme Court rules. On the State’s brief to its highest court, Brennan told Poker News Daily, “In our mind, they’ve broken no new ground. They haven’t strengthened their case at all. They are falling back on same arguments that were unsuccessful at the appellate level: We are bad people, we don’t deserve to be here, and sites don’t deserve to be represented by groups like iMEGA, which is simply an illegal internet gambling association.” If the State’s seizure and forfeiture are successful, the domain names in jeopardy would be inaccessible not only in Kentucky, but also around the world.
In Minnesota, the deadline is looming for 11 internet service providers (ISPs) to respond to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. The government entity mandated that ISPs block access to 200 internet gambling domains, although not all of the sites in question accept customers from the United States. Brennan updated Poker News Daily readers on whether any ISP has responded: “Every one we’ve spoken to agrees that Minnesota lacks jurisdiction and authority under the Wire Act. At this time, they’re not going to reply.” iMEGA’s legal team has had extensive conversations with the Minnesota Attorney General’s office, which has agreed not to force responses from ISPs in the near future.
Brennan noted that discussions with the Attorney General’s office and Department of Public Safety in Minnesota have been anything but hostile: “They’ve acknowledged that there is some contention and they seem to be interested in getting things right. While we’re still on the other side of a contentious issue, they’ve behaved reasonably and professionally.” Brennan noted that John Willems, Director of the Department of Public Safety’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division, has likely never handled a high-profile internet case before. However, upon hearing that 200 sites may be censored, “the opposition moved at internet speed.”
No strict timeline has been given as to when we may see further developments in Minnesota. Two weeks ago, iMEGA filed a lawsuit against Willems in his capacity as head of the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division. However, the organization is not rushing to seek a court order preventing a potential blockage from going into effect. Brennan explained, “We’re not all running to get in front of a Federal judge. Both sides will take a look at this and act in a reasonable timeline.”
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from Kentucky and Minnesota.
