But Assistant District Attorney John Grace said that when it comes to gambling, the Texas Supreme Court says points are the same as money. And because each player's odds of winning differ with each deal of the cards, poker is gambling, he said.
The explanation given there is a little unclear, but I've always been clear from the word of the law that any sort of gambling in a public place, where players risk an entry fee, is illegal. Conceptually I think there can be strong parallels drawn between a poker tournament and a bridge, or pinball, or videogame tournament, but in practice poker is poker and arguing that poker is not gambling is not a winning proposition.
See my Texas poker legality FAQ for the full details on Texas poker laws. Poker tournaments in bars and restaurants are legal only if players do not have to pay to enter or risk money in any other way (which makes it no longer gambling).
Is there a legislative effort in Texas to change the law to make poker legal there? I keep reading (okay, mostly from you, but still) about busts in Austin, and now Lubbock ... do the police understand that people want to do this, it doesn't hurt anyone, and they're driving things underground into shadier and shadier places?
There's no effort that I'm aware of. The only legal stuff happening is the APC (and possibly Redmen's) fighting their charges in court, but that won't change the law.
I've toyed with the idea of starting an effort to change the law, but quite frankly I don't have the energy and stamina it would require to mount such a movement, one which could quite easily get shot down in flames by the conservative legislature.
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Welcome to the all new Bloglines, the best resource for local blogs, news, and events.
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The city that never sleeps has plenty to talk about! From Times Square to Broadway shows and every fashion designer in between, you can get into an Empire State of Mind with the best of The Big Apple blogs: The Lo-Down, Gothamist, and Time Out New York.
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