I know this is an old article but look at the bottom part that I bolded..
Sunday, November 16, 2003
By MIKE DANIELS
Courier-Post Staff
If Mike Barbee feels like playing poker, he doesn't have to go to Atlantic City. He doesn't have to organize a group of buddies on a Friday night, either.
All Barbee, 43, of Voorhees, has to do is turn on his computer. He goes to his favorite poker Web site and he's playing for money in a matter of minutes.
"Just to be able to sit in the privacy of your own home and play (is a draw)," said the computer software executive. "If you want to play an hour, you just jump online and play. If you want to play for four or five hours, you play."
Barbee is not alone. Across the country, card sharks and newcomers to the game are playing Texas hold'em, seven-card stud, Omaha, and other poker games online in growing numbers. Televised poker sparked the boom, industry experts say, and now Internet sites, casinos and television are all outlets, feeding each other's success.
But Internet poker, at least when money changes hands, is illegal in New Jersey, state officials say. And regulators have been going after online gambling operators, accusing them in part of making gambling accessible to underage bettors.
New Jersey has already sued 10 offshore Internet gambling operations. Two sites that take bets on sporting events settled with the state, agreeing not to accept bets from New Jersey residents."No players have been targeted, but state gaming regulators warn that players are taking a risk. "Maybe people aren't going to bang down your door to arrest you. But if you get ripped off, who are you going to turn to? There's nothing you can do," said Kerry Hand, a spokeswoman for the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.
States have primary responsibility for enforcing gambling laws. But there are federal laws that can be used to prosecute interstate gambling operators, according to Chuck Humphrey, a Colorado attorney who specializes in gambling law.
Federal law enforcement agencies have not taken any position on whether online gamblers are acting illegally, Humphrey said. "They haven't said it's legal to play. I can't imagine they will. But they haven't said it's illegal to play.
Sunday, November 16, 2003
By MIKE DANIELS
Courier-Post Staff
If Mike Barbee feels like playing poker, he doesn't have to go to Atlantic City. He doesn't have to organize a group of buddies on a Friday night, either.
All Barbee, 43, of Voorhees, has to do is turn on his computer. He goes to his favorite poker Web site and he's playing for money in a matter of minutes.
"Just to be able to sit in the privacy of your own home and play (is a draw)," said the computer software executive. "If you want to play an hour, you just jump online and play. If you want to play for four or five hours, you play."
Barbee is not alone. Across the country, card sharks and newcomers to the game are playing Texas hold'em, seven-card stud, Omaha, and other poker games online in growing numbers. Televised poker sparked the boom, industry experts say, and now Internet sites, casinos and television are all outlets, feeding each other's success.
But Internet poker, at least when money changes hands, is illegal in New Jersey, state officials say. And regulators have been going after online gambling operators, accusing them in part of making gambling accessible to underage bettors.
New Jersey has already sued 10 offshore Internet gambling operations. Two sites that take bets on sporting events settled with the state, agreeing not to accept bets from New Jersey residents."No players have been targeted, but state gaming regulators warn that players are taking a risk. "Maybe people aren't going to bang down your door to arrest you. But if you get ripped off, who are you going to turn to? There's nothing you can do," said Kerry Hand, a spokeswoman for the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.
States have primary responsibility for enforcing gambling laws. But there are federal laws that can be used to prosecute interstate gambling operators, according to Chuck Humphrey, a Colorado attorney who specializes in gambling law.
Federal law enforcement agencies have not taken any position on whether online gamblers are acting illegally, Humphrey said. "They haven't said it's legal to play. I can't imagine they will. But they haven't said it's illegal to play.
