America Now Persecutes Americans

The operators of an online gambling site, residents of the State of Washington and business partners, have flown voluntarily to Louisiana where they were arrested and would stand trial. In an unprecedented move, their home state governor, Christine Gregoire, approved the extradition request.

The site, Betcha.com, has been in operation for only a short time. Nick Jenkins, an entrepreneur from Seattle, is already facing charges in his home state against the Washington State Gambling Board. He asked that he not be extradited until he completes the process of defending his stand to the Board. The Board has already shut down the site

The defense he chose was that his site was operating third party betting services. The site did not guarantee or back bets, allegedly making the site legal under the law.

This has not convinced the State of Louisiana which demanded Jenkins and his partners stand in court and respond to the charges of violating the state's laws against Internet-based gambling.

These charges of violating local and Federal laws and the dramatic new development in law enforcement, which has states demanding extradition over such charges, seem not to deter the three gambling site operators. Jenkins and his partners - Josie Imlay and Peter Abrahamsen - flew to Louisiana, where they were arrested immediately by the State Police.

They face up to five years in prison and fines of up to $20,000 each if indeed convicted. In the meanwhile, the case and the trial promise us another chapter in the continuous development of the US persecution of online gambling, a campaign many view as futile.