Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist has joined the statewide debate over the legality of adult arcades, declaring the video slot machines illegal.
Crist said the slot machines used in the controversial businesses that have popped up around Florida are games of chance, not skill, and therefore don't fit under the "Chuck E. Cheese" exemption that allows children to win prizes for playing games at pizza places.
"This is an interpretation based on legal research," said JoAnn Carrin, spokeswoman for the attorney general's office.
Crist also said it's illegal for slot machine winners to be given gift certificates to stores, such as Wal-Mart and Home Depot, instead of merchandise because they could be redeemed for cash or alcohol.
Volusia County law enforcement agencies reached the same conclusion in November, when they raided and shut down eight arcades. A circuit court judge in Daytona Beach ruled the machines' rotating icons spin too fast for a player to skillfully stop the reels and win.
Crist's March 24 legal opinion -- which has no regulatory power -- was issued at the request of city officials from Pompano Beach in Broward County. The City Commission asked the attorney general to take a stance on arcades hoping it would support efforts to limit the businesses, officials said.
Pompano Beach has since approved a moratorium preventing new arcades from opening. Several cities in Volusia County have done the same, including Ormond Beach, South Daytona and Edgewater where the arcades were shut down.
In the Volusia trial, arcade owners accepted plea agreements to second-degree misdemeanors for owning and operating illegal coin-operated gambling devices and received six months of probation. They also promised not to open another arcade.
However, another arcade opened in Deltona earlier this year. Owner Rosemarie Hall of Alley Katt's Arcade said her machines require skill and that players win prizes, such as candles and jewelry, instead of gift certificates.
"I work 10 to 13 hours a day here," Hall said Tuesday. "There's no way in the world I would do anything illegal."
Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson sent a letter to State Attorney John Tanner last month asking for help closing down Hall's arcade, saying the punishment given to previous owners was not strict enough to deter future arcades.
A representative with the State Attorney's Office did not return a call for comment.
Defense attorney Mike Wolf, who is representing the Volusia County arcade owners in an appeal of the circuit court decision, said the state gambling law is too vague and cannot be used to prosecute his clients.
"The fact that someone needed to ask the attorney general for an opinion bolsters my argument," he said.
To Bob Jarvis, professor of gambling law at Nova Southeastern University, the continued confusion means all sides can bet on one thing.
"We're ultimately headed for a showdown in the (Florida) Supreme Court," he said.
http://www.news-journalonline.com
Crist said the slot machines used in the controversial businesses that have popped up around Florida are games of chance, not skill, and therefore don't fit under the "Chuck E. Cheese" exemption that allows children to win prizes for playing games at pizza places.
"This is an interpretation based on legal research," said JoAnn Carrin, spokeswoman for the attorney general's office.
Crist also said it's illegal for slot machine winners to be given gift certificates to stores, such as Wal-Mart and Home Depot, instead of merchandise because they could be redeemed for cash or alcohol.
Volusia County law enforcement agencies reached the same conclusion in November, when they raided and shut down eight arcades. A circuit court judge in Daytona Beach ruled the machines' rotating icons spin too fast for a player to skillfully stop the reels and win.
Crist's March 24 legal opinion -- which has no regulatory power -- was issued at the request of city officials from Pompano Beach in Broward County. The City Commission asked the attorney general to take a stance on arcades hoping it would support efforts to limit the businesses, officials said.
Pompano Beach has since approved a moratorium preventing new arcades from opening. Several cities in Volusia County have done the same, including Ormond Beach, South Daytona and Edgewater where the arcades were shut down.
In the Volusia trial, arcade owners accepted plea agreements to second-degree misdemeanors for owning and operating illegal coin-operated gambling devices and received six months of probation. They also promised not to open another arcade.
However, another arcade opened in Deltona earlier this year. Owner Rosemarie Hall of Alley Katt's Arcade said her machines require skill and that players win prizes, such as candles and jewelry, instead of gift certificates.
"I work 10 to 13 hours a day here," Hall said Tuesday. "There's no way in the world I would do anything illegal."
Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson sent a letter to State Attorney John Tanner last month asking for help closing down Hall's arcade, saying the punishment given to previous owners was not strict enough to deter future arcades.
A representative with the State Attorney's Office did not return a call for comment.
Defense attorney Mike Wolf, who is representing the Volusia County arcade owners in an appeal of the circuit court decision, said the state gambling law is too vague and cannot be used to prosecute his clients.
"The fact that someone needed to ask the attorney general for an opinion bolsters my argument," he said.
To Bob Jarvis, professor of gambling law at Nova Southeastern University, the continued confusion means all sides can bet on one thing.
"We're ultimately headed for a showdown in the (Florida) Supreme Court," he said.
http://www.news-journalonline.com
