Alabama Says No to Bingo/Slot Machines 

Governor Bob Riley has taken one more step forward in his goal to eradicate all bingo machines from the state. He has taken the stance that bingo machines are simply slot machines in disguise. He says that slot machines at these bingo parlors are illegal and he wants them all removed from the state. The bingo parlors are upset to say the least and have been fighting him on it. They say that bingo is legal in the state and he should not be able to take that away from them. 

Riley says that bingo is legal in the state but that slot machines are not – and therefore they need to go. He contends that if they want to play bingo they need to play with the markers, balls and cards, and not with electronic slot machines. He has gotten opposition from the parlors as well as many within the government itself. 

However, Riley can stand a little taller today as he has just won the latest case involving the slot machines. The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the governor stating that the bingo machines are a “sham” and that they are in fact illegal. They said that bingo is a card game, not an electronic game. The court said that based on the officer’s testimony that they had no doubt that the bingo games were slot machines for they looked and played just like them. 

Riley says that his task force now has a clear idea of what is legal and what is not – and the bingo machines aren’t. He has informed those states that ship the slot machines to Alabama that they are not allowed to do so any more. He says that they are responsible for regulating the slot machine industry within their own states, and they need to ensure that these slot machines are not crossing state lines.

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