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October 17, 2012

Internet gambling parlors closing down in wake of federal court ruling

By Tom Davidson and Keith Gushard Meadville Tribune

MEADVILLE — Internet sweepstakes parlors are facing closure in the wake of a recent federal court order that lets stand a Pennsylvania law aimed at shutting them down.

The businesses have been in operation for about a year in Pennsylvania, including one in Meadville and several in Mercer County.

The parlors are a potentially profitable “game” that offers a prize (similar to the popular Monopoly game at McDonald’s, according to operators).

However, Pennsylvania moved to closed them, arguing the parlors are an attempt to skirt the state’s gambling laws.

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania sided with the latter argument when Judge Robert D. Mariani denied a motion for a restraining order and preliminary injunction filed by a sweepstakes parlor operator in Luzerne County.

The ruling lets stand a law Gov. Tom Corbett signed June 30 to close the “legal loophole” by which the parlors operated.

The sweepstakes parlors operate by selling customers phone cards which entered them into a finite sweepstakes pool. People can either redeem the cards immediately to find out if they’ve “won” or “lost” or use the cards to purchase Internet time and play casino-like games to eventually reveal if they’ve “won” or “lost.”

Crawford County District Attorney Francis Schultz said he plans to look into the matter.

Schultz said he would either send a letter to operators or meet with operators in Crawford County.

Mercer County District Attorney Robert G. Kochems has put the operators of these establishments in that county on notice that come next week, they will need to close up shop to abide by the law.

“I will direct law enforcement authorities to begin prosecuting violations of the law beginning Oct. 22,” Kochems wrote in a letter he sent to operators. “This gives you time to give notice to your employees and to see if a new stay of the law is agreed to.”

Anthony Nuzzo, who along with his wife, JoAnn, operate JoJo’s Internet Cafe, a sweepstakes parlor at the Downtown Mall in Meadville, said the local cafe will shut down on Friday. It opened last fall.

He declined further comment saying, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

Miracle Petrino, who manages Mercer County Internet sweepstakes parlors in Sharon and in Hermitage, said those parlors will be closed next week.



Keith Gushard is a reporter with The Meadville Tribune and Tom Davidson is a reporter with The Sharon Herald. Both newspapers are owned by Community Newspaper Holdings Inc.

 

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