June 6 - If you live in the state of Washington and you play poker online you are committing a "Class C" felony as of tomorrow June 7 according to a new bill that has been signed into law. Other Class C felonies in Washington include accessing child pornography and repeat drunk driving arrests.
The penalty if caught is as astonishing $10,000 fine and/or jail time up to a maximum of five years!
The good news for online poker players is that the state is highly unlikely to prosecute anyone based on this law, mainly due to a lack of resources to track down players. Instead the law will focus on prosecuting indiviudals who live in Washington and operate online gambling websites.
All forms of online gambling are technically illegal in the USA according to federal law but this is the first state law that clarifies the matter to this degree.
The bill was sponsored by lawmakers who rely on the powerful Native American casino lobby. They control most of the Bricks & Mortar card rooms in the state and would like to force poker players off their computers and into their casinos.
A local news radio station is running a poll on the matter. So far 85% of respondents say that online gambling should not be made illegal, little realizing that it already is illegal - it simply is not enforced.
