http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/ Poker Players Alliance Forums Topic: Home poker games in Illinois en Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:33:20 +0000 http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/topic/256#post-750 Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:05:00 +0000 Skallagrim 750@http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/ <p>There is already a thread on Illinois law in this forum ( <a href="http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/topic/170" rel="nofollow">http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/topic/170</a> ), but admittedly it didnt really address "home games."</p> <p>Unfortunately, there is no provision in Illinois law that exempts a home game. Many states have such provisions providing, typically, that a home poker game is not illegal if its in a private residence and no rake is taken, but not Illinois.</p> <p>In fact, the plain reading of the Illinois gambling statute makes playing ANY game for money illegal. I KID YOU NOT. Play chess against your friend at $5.00 a game in Illinois and you are guilty of a misdemeanor offense!</p> <p>"Contests of skill" are exempted, and professional sports players are OK because they are paid to play whether they win or lose - but very little else.</p> <p>The fact that Illinois authorities have never arrested anyone for a home poker game is well known, but they could if they wanted to.</p> <p>As for the Constitution, well the best I can say is that no Court has ever found a constitutional right to gamble or play poker. And although one may try and fit the Constitutional right to privacy to games played in private, there are 2 problems from a legal standpoint: 1) the Courts have almost never expanded the "right to privacy" to include anything beyond reproductive and sexual matters (Actually, there is no "right to privacy" in the Constitution, but the Courts of the 1960's sort of developed one out of the 9th and 10th amendments - until it led to Roe v. Wade - the backlash from that case stopped any further expansion of this right); and 2) if you play the game FOR MONEY you have crossed into the area of "commerce." States have always had the right to regulate and/or ban types of commerce.</p> <p>Now I personally would like to see the right to privacy expanded, but there are extremely few judges or politicians out there who agree with me.</p> <p>Skallagrim </p> http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/topic/256#post-737 Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:03:40 +0000 arrgon 737@http://pokerplayersalliance.org/forums/ <p>Are home poker games legal in Illinois? If not how the he** is that constitutional? </p>