Court Date on Kentucky Gambling Domains

The supreme court in the US state of Kentucky has set Thursday October 22 as the date when it will hear oral arguments in Governor Steven Bashear's final appeal in a case that has pitted him against a collection of online gambling and civil liberties groups.

Bashear lost a hearing at the Kentucky Court of Appeals in January, after the court said the state does not have the jurisdiction to seize online casinos' Internet domain names in order to stop them from operating in the state.

Poker Players Alliance chief John Pappas said at the time that the ruling was a "tremendous victory for Internet freedom."

Kentucky had shortlisted 141 domains for seizure, including PokerStars, two bingo sites and some major sports betting sites.
Leading the case against Bashear in court is the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association.

iMEGA lost a case last week before a US appeals court in which it claimed anti-gambling laws were too vague, unconstitutional and infringed on individuals' rights to privacy. However, the organization said the ruling showed some glimmer of hope as it indicated the issue was one of state - rather than federal jurisdiction.

The Poker Players Alliance, Interactive Gaming Council, American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Democracy & Technology, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Internet Commerce Association, eBay and Network Solutions, have joined iMEGA in the suit.