Published: Friday, March 30, 2007 Online-Casinos.com
KELLY'S GAMBLE FAILS
Ex-poker club owner is fined over 'skill vs. chance' definition
The former owner of London's poker club 'Gutshot' was in court again this week, this time for sentencing. Derek Kelly had originally faced charges of profiting from a game of chance but defended himself against the charges by claiming that poker was more skill-dependent than prone to vagaries of fortune.
Unfortunately for Kelly, his argument failed, and he was fined GBP10 000 pounds ($19 500) Thursday after a jury found him guilty of profiting from a game of chance in violation of Britain's gambling laws.
Kelly had argued that he didn't need a gambling license to take money from players because the U.K.'s Gaming Act 1968 only covers games of chance like roulette or slot machines, not skill-based games such as poker or golf, reports Bloombergs news service.
"It was your view that poker, and particularly Texas Hold'em was not a game of chance,'' Justice Simon Wilkinson said at a sentencing hearing for Kelly in London.”In adhering to this view, you took a huge gamble.''
Had the jury agreed with Kelly, more than a dozen private poker clubs in London would have been free to charge members without regulation by the Gambling Commission until September when the U.K.'s Gambling Act 2005 comes into force.
Kelly was found guilty under Britain's old gambling law in January for charging some of Gutshot's 25 000 members to buy chips and enter a tournament.
"I think the judge was reasonable in the end,'' Kelly said after the sentencing. ``Five hundred pounds a month I can just about afford.''
Kelly was also conditionally discharged for two years and the GBP10 000 will go toward covering a portion of the prosecution's costs. He said he will only appeal his conviction and not the sentence.
Kelly now runs Gutshot's online poker site, which is registered in Dublin.
Justice Wilkinson said he decided on a GBP10 000-pound penalty rather than prison after considering Gutshot was a well-managed club that took moderate fees and catered to players with different skill levels. He also noted Kelly's good character and cooperation.
Kelly, and online sites such as Pokerstars.com, have argued for months that they are not subject to U.S. or U.K. gambling laws because poker is a game of skill where a talented player will win over a lucky player given time.
The new gaming law is even more restrictive in its definition of chance, Nick Nocton, a partner at London-based Jeffrey Green Russell solicitors, said. "There's little doubt that any game where chance can be eliminated - even by superlative skill - will still be a game of chance under the new law,'' said Nocton, who wasn't involved in the case. |
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