In a Wednesday press release, Attorney General Steve Marshall announced that his office has filed multiple lawsuits against casinos in five counties that continue to operate illegal gambling machines in defiance of state law. The lawsuits ask the courts to prohibit the promotion, operation, and transportation of “electronic bingo” machines in these counties. The State is also seeking injunctive relief, asking the courts to cease gambling operations while the lawsuits are pending.
The lawsuits have been filed in Greene, Houston, Lowndes, Macon, and Morgan counties. The defendants are not only the operating casinos, but the machine manufacturers and vendors, and the government authorities responsible for promoting gambling within those counties. Perhaps the most notable of these illegal operations is the VictoryLand Casino in Macon County, which reopened just last year after closing due to a raid by state authorities.
In his press release, Marshall stressed the importance of upholding state law when it comes to these illegal gambling operations.
“It is the responsibility of the Attorney General to ensure that Alabama’s laws are enforced, including those laws that prohibit illegal gambling. Through multiple rulings in recent years, the Alabama Supreme Court has made it abundantly clear that electronic bingo and the use of slot machines are illegal in all Alabama counties. Therefore, we have taken action to hold accountable those who defy the laws of our state. These lawsuits represent a comprehensive legal approach developed by the Attorney General, with the assistance of the Office’s career experts, to finally put a stop to illegal gambling.”
The lawsuits rekindle an ongoing legal battle with gambling operations within the state. Marshall references 10 separate gambling cases in his press release, and hopes that these lawsuits will finally put an end to the matter across the entire state. While there are some constitutional amendments legalizing bingo, Marshall argues that those amendments do not include electronic bingo, and that such machines should be declared a nuisance to the state.
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