High court upholds video poker ban

Web posted Tuesday, November 28, 2000

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By Margaret N. O'Shea
South Carolina Bureau

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a South Carolina law Monday that makes video poker machines illegal contraband, dashing an appeal that was one of the gambling industry's last hopes of regaining a toehold in the state.

The court, without comment, turned down video poker operators' claim that a government ban on the machines was an unlawful ``taking'' of their property without compensation. The ban went into effect when video poker became illegal in July.

Monday's decision comes on the brink of a legislative session in which South Carolina lawmakers are expected to decide how a state lottery will be handled, including likely provisions to ensure it does not incorporate video poker features.

Voters passed a referendum this month to get rid of a constitutional ban on lotteries, but it happened amid gambling foes' contentions that a lottery would eventually resurrect video poker - a multibillion-dollar business in South Carolina during the past decade. Video poker also was supposed to be on the November ballot, but the state Supreme Court threw out that referendum while keeping other provisions in the law providing for it.

One made video poker illegal after July 1 unless voters said otherwise - something that never happened. Another made the machines themselves contraband.

State Attorney General Charlie Condon contended in court that operators could have sold their machines out of state before it became illegal to own them, so there was no taking - a legal concept citizens often take to court when they think the state ought to pay them for property it renders unusable.

On Monday, Mr. Condon had two words for the industry: ``Good riddance.''

And Gov. Jim Hodges said Monday's U.S. Supreme Court decision was welcome, but no surprise. ``That is the decision that everyone anticipated.''

It tallied with a South Carolina Supreme Court ruling that video poker operators were entitled to no compensation for their buildings, land and other property after the state put them out of business.

But in Washington, an attorney for the industry said there might be dozens of individual lawsuits in federal court seeking damages from the state.

If that happens, operators would likely cite the same constitutional property rights that underpinned the case that failed Monday, suggested Roger J. Marzulla, who represented two Upstate businesses, Westside Quik Shop and Winner's Pot of Gold Hot Spot.

Other lawyers involved in poker cases during its contentious history in South Carolina questioned whether gambling operators could claim damages if the U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled that nothing was illegally taken from them.

Mr. Condon said Monday's ruling means it's over. ``The video gambling industry has now run out of courts,'' he said.

Mr. Condon's stance was partly what angered poker operators last summer when the industry was shut down. He wanted state law enforcement officers to start seizing machines as soon as the midnight deadline passed June 30.

Some machines were seized in July, but not immediately after the deadline.

Reach Margaret N. O'Shea at (803) 279-6895.

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