Theopulus Gordon could have prevented the death of Eric Robinson last September, but he didn’t.FORT WAYNE – In late December, Indiana Gaming Commission agents raided two local businesses and carted off 51 gaming machines and $3,000 in cash.
Now the company that owned the machines is suing the commission and Chairman Tim Murphy, claiming the state’s enforcement of a prohibition on electronic gaming devices is a violation of the company’s constitutional rights.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Wayne on Tuesday, Florida-based Buckwheat Holdings is asking a federal judge to prevent the Indiana Gaming Commission from future enforcement.
On Dec. 21, Indiana Gaming Commission agents targeted Lincoln Plaza Internet Sensations in New Haven and Wrigley Field Bar and Grill, removing a total of 51 machines after two undercover investigations.
The raid came after a Dec. 19 memo issued by the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission. The memo said “sweepstakes machines” popping up in bars, restaurants, convenience stores and other premises that sold alcohol were not allowed, even for businesses authorized to have pull-tab-type games.
State officials said at the time of the raids that Internet sweepstakes machines can quickly become a problem and already have become prevalent in states such as Ohio, North Carolina and Florida. But Buckwheat Holdings argues the machines are merely Internet terminals, accessible to those who buy Internet time at a rate of $5 an hour.
When patrons buy a 12-minute block of Internet time, they are provided one credit for entry in a sweepstakes. They also get one sweepstakes entry free by requesting one at the front desk of the “Internet café,” according to court documents.
Patrons can choose how, and whether, to reveal whether they have won a prize, attorneys for Buckwheat Holdings said in the complaint. The prizes for the sweepstakes can be claimed at the front desk, according to court documents.
“Not unlike the McDonald’s Monopoly game and other similar sweepstakes games, the simulated games offered to reveal sweepstake entries on the Internet terminals are simply a promotion to encourage customers to purchase Internet time,” the attorneys argued.
Attorneys for Buckwheat Holdings argue that the gaming commission’s reliance on current Indiana gaming laws is misguided and that the seizure of the machines is a violation of the company’s constitutional rights.
The U.S. Supreme Court has held that video games qualify for First Amendment protection, and the state law broadly criminalizes anything that is a simulation or variation of a slot machine, according to the lawsuit.
Under the current law, a personal computer or cellphone could be considered an illegal electronic gaming device if used to access online websites that offer simulated slot machines, according to the lawsuit.
Buckwheat Holdings alleges that the gaming commission’s enforcement of the law violates the company’s free speech rights, right to be free from illegal search and seizure, and right to due process. It is asking a federal judge to prevent the state from taking further action against the company.
This is not the first time Buckwheat Holdings has confronted the state’s gaming commission on this issue.
In October, the company filed a similar lawsuit in Marion Superior Court, and that case is still pending, according to the Indiana Attorney General’s Office.
Officials at the gaming commission declined to comment on the lawsuit and referred requests to the Indiana Attorney General’s Office, which in turn declined to comment and referred requests back to the gaming commission.
The local attorney representing Buckwheat Holdings also declined to comment Friday.
