Upcoming ruling ‘defining moment’ for gambling laws

Video-gambling machines being confiscated from local establishments and the Birmingham Race Course may be routine enough news that few people even blink at the reports. But the latest move by Jefferson County Sheriff Mike Hale and the sheriff’s office may prove to be “a defining moment for gambling in Jefferson County and possibly throughout the state.”

Hale said he believes this case quite possibly will change gambling laws forever if Circuit Judge Scott Vowell rules Jan. 17 the machines confiscated from the Birmingham track are indeed illegal.

“If he rules the machines are illegal, we will proceed with the criminal case,” Hale said. “If he rules they are legal, then the criminal case is a moot point and Milton McGregor can open back up for business.”

McGregor, who owns the Birmingham Race Course and VictoryLand racetrack in Shorter, debuted hundreds of machines at the Birmingham track in mid-December. Marketing his Birmingham track as “casino-like,” the machines, resembling slot machines, were deemed sweepstakes machines.

But Hale said McGregor is taking an obscure sweepstakes law and trying to build a bridge from it. “He is trying to make something legal that is not legal,” he said.

“This is a fake, a fraud, a sham, a scam.”

Dan Ireland, executive director of Alabama Citizens Action Program (ALCAP), agreed.

“It is unconstitutional,” Ireland said. “They are skirting the letter of the law trying to get gambling the way they want it. The only sweepstakes law we have is mail-order sweepstakes.

“I think Mike has stood tall in his position in law enforcement as the sheriff of Jefferson County to call into question the legitimacy of these gambling machines at the dog track,” he said. “I don’t know what the hearing will prove, but I can tell you now that the law of Alabama does not allow this kind of gambling.

“The sheriff is to be commended for the stand he has taken and the fact that he is willing to try to do something about it,” Ireland said. “We need more law enforcement people who will join forces with him.”