Clarification on the new law.....?

[colonia23]

I know this has probably been discussed many times....but I am still confused.

I thought the new law does not explicitly prohibit individuals from placing bets !?! Why do sportbooks then block user with IPs originating in the US. I am just a resident here, so I actually have a foreign bank account, but still can't place a bet with Pinnacle. That's BS !!!
And when I aksed Neteller to change my address to my foreign address, they started talking about my permanent residence...What does that have to do with anything?
Do I misunderstand the new law ?!

Thanks for your help:toast:

 

[poopah]

The law says no one can place a bet within the continent of the united states, It doesn't matter where you are from, you can not plact a bet online from the USA, it's illegal, U.S citizens and residents can place bets if they are out of the country, this is a jurisdiction law, no gambling online from inside USA borders, don't matter where you are from.

 

[Muddy]

And when I aksed Neteller to change my address to my foreign address, they started talking about my permanent residence...What does that have to do with anything?


Thanks for your help:toast:

Can explain what happened with neteller a little more?

 

[TheBigFish]

The law says no one can place a bet within the continent of the united states, It doesn't matter where you are from, you can not plact a bet online from the USA, it's illegal, U.S citizens and residents can place bets if they are out of the country, this is a jurisdiction law, no gambling online from inside USA borders, don't matter where you are from.

This is wrong, wrong, wrong!! Jesus! First of all, the the United States is not a continent!!

The UIGA does nothing whatsoever to prohibit the actual placing of any wager, but rather deals with banks' ability to accept funds for the purpose of gambling activity. The breatdth of what constitutes illegal gambling activity is not expanded under the Act. Thus, the Wire Act remains the main federal statute for the prohibition of gambling activity via phone and (maybe) the Internet. The Wire Act, however, does not apply to "players," but rather to those "in the business of gaming."

The post above could not be more incorrect.

 

[da1prophet]

The law says no one can place a bet within the continent of the united states, It doesn't matter where you are from, you can not plact a bet online from the USA, it's illegal, U.S citizens and residents can place bets if they are out of the country, this is a jurisdiction law, no gambling online from inside USA borders, don't matter where you are from.

That's 100% incorrect, assuming you're talking about the regulations that were snuck into the Safe Ports Act. They only deal with the act of financing gambling accounts, and they only apply to financial institutions. Even the laws passed in the state of Washington which made online betting a felony are already being discussed for revision and the elimination of the criminal penalty.

Some states have passed specific legislation dealing with online gambling, but assuming you don't live in one of them there's no legal prohibition against placing a bet online.

In sports gambling, you could make a case (as the Justice Department has tried to) that the Wire Act also governs online bets placed in other countries, but that's a notion that many legal experts dispute. That's the primary reason that the anti-gambling zealots want to ammend it to specifically address online gambling...

 

[da1prophet]

Can explain what happened with neteller a little more?

Their founders got busted on Federal money laundering charges, and they decided to pull out of the US market. The line they're giving now is that they're having to examine the legal implications of refunding the money to US clients.

I'd suggest searching on this forum for more in-depth info, since its been the primary topic of discussion for the past couple of weeks. Also, do a Google news search on "Neteller" and you'll find a ton of news stories on it...

 

[bmconsultants]

The law says no one can place a bet within the continent of the united states, It doesn't matter where you are from, you can not plact a bet online from the USA, it's illegal, U.S citizens and residents can place bets if they are out of the country, this is a jurisdiction law, no gambling online from inside USA borders, don't matter where you are from.

That sounds like a DoJ fantasy, not what the law actually says. It is basically about making US banks try and stop people sending money offshore for gambling. It doesn't ban the gambling itself, by the operations and defintely not by individual gamblers.

Try these threads about it - the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act 2006 (UIGEA):

A section by section breakdown of the Gambling Bill with commentary.....
http://forum2.therx.com/showthread.php?t=409586
Will the gambling bill make Google and Yahoo remove sites from their search results?
http://forums.therx.com/showthread.php?t=410124

The following US states do however ban some form of online gambling for thier residents (either completely, or variations normally that involve protection of local businesses from better run competition in the UK, Antigua etc.):

* Utah
* Hawaii
* Michigan
* Indiana
* Oregon
* Nevada
* Washington
* Illinois
* Louisiana
* South Dakota

(As to a discussion how the law got passed, see:
Card Player's Legal Counsler Has a Conversation With Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr.
http://www.cardplayer.com/poker_law/article/1705
)

 

[AdamSelene]

The law prohibits the transmission and acceptance of money for the purposes of illegal gambling. So it covers only the bank or financial intermediary and the casino/sportsbook/pokerroom*. There are only penalties against the latter or a bank/financial intermediary that is complicit with the latter (i.e. NETELLER).

* But the law lacks jurisdiction without significant nexus to the United States.

What is illegal gambling?

A) Placing wagers on sporting events over interstate/international telephone wire. There is only a very weak precedent applying this to the Internet. Nor does this federal law does apply to casino wagering or poker.

B) Placing any wager from Washington State. Other state laws vary.

So there is a lot of online gambling not covered by this law. Depositing at BoDog and only playing poker or casino is perfectly legal from many States.

Problem is the banks and financial institutions aren't going to bother figuring out which is legal and which is not -- and the prosecutors use a brush much broader than the actual law, claiming all online gambling is illegal (it is not).

 

[mws]

BigFish is correct.

So is da1prophet:

Some states have passed specific legislation dealing with online gambling, but assuming you don't live in one of them there's no legal prohibition against placing a bet online.

 

[mws]

Good info from Adam Selene and bmconsultants, too. Good job, gentlemen.

 

[colonia23]

Thank you everybody ! That was very helpful and very much appreciated.