Gambling – Page 6 – Family Council

Jacksonville Police Bust Three Illegal Gambling Operations

Dec 13, 2024Jerry CoxGamblingGambling

Jacksonville Police reportedly busted three illegal gambling operations.

In a statement issued Monday, the police department said,

On December 9th, 2024, the Jacksonville Police Department executed two search warrants on two local businesses for gaming machine violations, and charged a third owner of another business for related gaming violations. Officers seized over $13,000.00, drugs, and firearms.

_______________________________________________________________________

MAX’S CONVENIENCE STORE / PHILLIPS 66

713 SOUTH FIRST STREET, JACKSONVILLE, AR 72076

Detectives seized $9,288.23 in cash along with other evidence related to gaming violations. The owner, Venkata Melapu, was arrested and charged with:

• 1 Felony count of Keeping a Gaming House

• 1 Misdemeanor count of Keeping a Gaming Device

_______________________________________________________________________

JACKSONVILLE STOP AND SHOP

1116 SOUTH FIRST STREET, JACKSONVILLE, AR 72076

Detectives seized 3 gaming devices, $4,098.14 in cash, 2 firearms, and approximately 2 ounces of marijuana from the business. The owner, Ahmed Ali, was arrested and charged with:

• 1 Felony count of Simultaneous Possession of Drugs and Firearms

• 1 Felony count of Use of Another Person’s Property to Facilitate Certain Crimes

• 1 Felony count of Possession with Purpose to Deliver, Schedule VI

• 1 Felony count of Endangering the Welfare of a Minor

• 1 Felony count of Keeping a Gaming House

• 1 Misdemeanor count of Keeping a Gaming Device

• Penalty enhancement for Proximity of a Certain Facility within 1000 feet of a Church or Daycare

_______________________________________________________________________

AJ MART – 2 LOCATIONS

1521 SOUTH FIRST STREET AND 3701 NORTH FIRST STREET

Detectives obtained search warrants for both locations, however, during their investigation they determined that the gaming machines had been moved prior to execution of the search warrants. Jagjit Singh, the owner of the business, was arrested and charged with:

• 1 Felony count of Keeping a Gaming House

• 1 Misdemeanor count of Keeping a Gaming Device

With the exception of the state lottery and the casinos in Hot Springs, West Memphis, and Pine Bluff, Arkansas law generally prohibits gambling.

This isn’t the first time illegal gambling machines have cropped up in Arkansas.

In 2017 authorities in Jefferson County reportedly raided illegal gambling houses in Pine Bluff.

In 2019, law enforcement raided illegal gambling operations at several gas stations and businesses in Jacksonville.

Illegal gambling machines often are placed in gas stations, liquor stores, or old store fronts. Some look and operate a lot like slot machines while others appear more like arcade games that let players gamble for money or prizes.

Gambling is a blight on the community. It is linked to bankruptcy, divorce, substance abuse, domestic violence, and suicide.

If you suspect an illegal gambling house is operating in your community, please notify your local authorities. Then call us at (501) 375-7000.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Bill Filed Letting Colleges, Universities Offer Raffles During Sporting Events

Nov 22, 2024Jerry CoxGamblingArkansas Legislature, Gambling

A bill filed at the Arkansas Capitol on Thursday would authorize colleges and universities in Arkansas to offer raffles during sporting events.

Currently, Arkansas’ Charitable Bingo and Raffles laws let non-profit charities conduct bingo and sell raffle tickets as part of their fundraising efforts. State reports indicate the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration issued 719 bingo and raffle licenses to charities last fiscal year.

H.B. 1044 by Rep. R. J. Hawk (R — Bryant) and Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R — Little Rock), the Arkansas Sports Raffle Act, would let colleges and universities conduct raffles in-person or online during sporting events. Schools would be able to sell raffle tickets themselves or use a nonprofit charity affiliated with the school conduct the raffle. The bill contains a provision preventing casinos from operating or administering a raffle on a school’s behalf.

Schools could use raffle proceeds to benefit school athletic programs — including purchasing and maintaining athletic facilities or providing financial aid, scholarships, stipends, and other compensation to student-athletes.

Family Council is currently neutral regarding H.B. 1044. Family Council has never opposed charitable bingo or charitable raffles that benefit nonprofit groups as long as the charities themselves were the ones who administered the raffle. H.B. 1044 addresses that concern by making it clear that casinos cannot conduct raffles. We plan to continue monitoring and reporting on this bill.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Time to Call Off All Bets on Sports Gambling: Guest Column

Nov 4, 2024John StonestreetGamblingCasino Gambling, Sports Betting

The addiction of gambling hits not just in dollars, but in human lives.

A few years into widespread legalized sports gambling, the results are in, and it is clear that this industry is devastating for individuals, families, and even sports. In an article for The Atlantic, Charles Faith Lehman states the truth bluntly: “Legalizing Sports Gambling Was a Huge Mistake.” The data supports that claim.

$35 billion in bets will be placed on NFL games alone this season. That is about a third more than last year, and 100% more than just six years ago, when sports gambling became legal (again). The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 effectively banned sports gambling in most places, but the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the law in 2018, paving the way for states to regulate their own industries. Today, in 38 states plus Washington, D.C., there are no meaningful regulations.

As a result, sportsbooks have raked in over $300 billion in just six years. Obviously, that money did not come from the winners. According to Lehman, the return of sports gambling “has caused a wave of financial and familial misery” that “disproportionately falls on the most economically precarious households.” In other words, those who have the least money to lose do the vast majority of losing.

The damage is enormous. For every dollar spent on betting, household investing fell by an average of two dollars. Since 2018, there have been large increases in over-drafted bank accounts and maxed out credit cards. Legalized sports gambling has increased “the risk that a household goes bankrupt by 25 to 30 percent,” and it has caused debt delinquency to surge.

This financial strain, in turn, worsens social pathologies. According to research cited by Lehman, an upset loss for an NFL home team correlates to a 10% spike in male domestic abuse. Overall, states with legalized sports gambling have seen an estimated 9% increase in “intimate-partner violence.”

Given this data comes from the same states just a few years apart, it is highly unlikely these correlations are mere coincidences. Sports gambling is causing financial ruin and domestic violence in homes. As Lehman put it, measuring this industry is more than counting dollars and cents. It is counting the cost to human lives, especially to women and children dragged into a destructive and addictive pastime.

In the age of smartphones, betting has become easier than ever. Wagers can be placed on virtually all aspects of a game, from individual pitches to how long the national anthem lasts. People can make bets from home without traveling to the seedy part of town. Notifications in eye-catching apps and a deluge of catchy ads with false promises open up the industry to people who might never have otherwise gambled.

And legalized sports gambling corrupts sports. Tennis players, Olympians, and NBA referees have all been caught fixing games and matches. Last year, the NFL suspended five players for gambling-related violations, and a Sportradar analysis found a 250% year-over-year increase in suspicious matches in basketball alone.

According to Lottery USA, the odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are one in over 302.6 million. Powerball is roughly one in 292.2 million. For comparison, the odds of being struck by lightning in a given year are about one in a million. The odds are slightly better in sports betting because, as the adage goes, “The house always wins.” Sportsbooks don’t make $300 billion in six years by minting millionaires out of their customers.

The national experiment with sports gambling has failed miserably. Laws are often necessary to protect freedom and the common good. Though “consenting adults doing what they want with their money” sounds like freedom, it is as misleading as the idea of “consenting adults doing what they want with their bodies.” In both cases, poorly defined freedom enslaves, addicts, and harms others. In both cases, so-called “consent” is anything but consensual for the innocent parties dragged along, and whose lives are ruined as a result.

This scourge of an industry is based on a distorted view of freedom that leaves people in bondage. That should be more than enough reason for the American people to call off all bets and reverse on sports gambling, again.