For owners and operators of video gambling arcades in Alabama the recent ruling by Circuit Court Judge Dan King was not good news.
On Aug. 30 King, who is a judge in Jefferson County’s Bessemer division, ruled that arcade owners across the state should stop operating video gambling devices until higher courts rule on the legality of the machines.
King’s ruling was the first order to address the long-standing controversial issue on a statewide basis. Part of King’s 32-page ruling stated, “Because there has been no ruling in Alabama about legality of these games, there has been inconsistent enforcement by law enforcement personnel. Some operations have been allowed to proceed and others had machines seized,” King wrote in his order.
Video gambling opponents achieved another milestone when King allowed class-action status to a video gambling lawsuit pending in his court. The suit, which was filed in 1999 by attorney Robert Roden on behalf of Fred Pickard and Lewis Dowdell against Funliner of Alabama LLC and other companies, will now have two group classifications.
The defendant class is designated as all arcade owners and operators in the state while the plaintiff class is anyone who has lost money playing the machines. The suit states that the defendants “promoted gambling through their establishments with the intent of gaining millions of dollars in illegal profits.”
Roden has included in the defendant class local and national chain stores such as Wal-Mart, Bruno’s and Winn Dixie, who sold $5 gift certificates to arcade owners.
According to Roden, by King’s granting class-action status, anyone who has played video gambling machines since they were introduced into the state in 1993 can qualify as a plaintiff.
“This court’s order will be a clear rule for all interested parties to follow plaintiffs, defendants, Alabama citizens and law enforcement and will serve the public’s interest in the consistent enforcement of the laws of the State of Alabama,” King stated in his ruling.
“Getting a ruling like this is a rare commodity,” Roden said, referring to King’s two orders, classifying a class of plaintiffs and defendants. “Being able to identify and prove who qualifies as a plaintiff will be difficult.”
Roden said he feels strongly that Funliner’s Montgomery attorney John Bolton III will appeal the case to the Supreme Court.
The first statewide ripple resulting from King’s ruling was felt in Montgomery Sept. 3.
During a city council meeting Mayor Bobby Bright stated he was ordering all video
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