The Texas District and County Attorneys Association in Austin is going after public poker tournaments, by proactively seeking an opinion from the Texas Attorney General that free public poker tournaments which use a points-based or similar system to give out prizes are illegal.

To bolster his interpretation of Texas' gambling laws, Kypreos is seeking an opinion from the Texas attorney general's office on the legality of public poker games that use a point system.
[...]
Police and prosecutors are waiting for similar guidance before cracking down on public poker games, said Richard Alpert, Tarrant County assistant district attorney.

Link

The amazing part of this is that Markus Kypreos, the research attorney making this case, is contending that public poker tournaments are illegal even if they are free. I thought the above article had it wrong until I read his own article from the November-December TDCAA Prosecutor newsletter:

Two blocks from the TDCAA office, a sign hangs from a restaurant balcony: "Free Texas Hold ’Em Tournament Every Saturday." This has become an all too-common attempt to circumvent the law. These poker clubs, which use local restaurants and bars to hold their tournaments, eliminate the entry fee and allow the public to play for free. They then award the winners points. Over several months, players can use their points to redeem valuable rewards and prizes. Some establishments even award vacations. So why are these poker clubs illegal?

Link (warning: very large PDF file!)

He then goes on to contend that players are playing for something of value, and therefore the contest is illegal. Kypreos is conveniently overlooking the fact that the Texas penal code is very clear:

"Bet" means an agreement to win or lose something of value solely or partially by chance.

Link

I can't see it likely that he will succeed in effectively redefining "bet" as including agreements to simply win something of value based on chance, with no chance of losing. If that were to occur, a whole swath of promotional games and activities in Texas would suddenly be as illegal as the so-called "illegal poker clubs" (read: bars and restaurants offering free tournaments) that this radical anti-poker lobbyist is trying to get banned.

Update: see here for an update.

>>The amazing part of this is that Markus Kypreos, the research attorney making this case, is contending that public poker tournaments are illegal even if they are free. I thought the above article had it wrong until I read his own article from the November-December TDCAA Prosecutor newsletter:

I had heard this before from another sources, but had found it too astounding to believe.

Does Texas have a procedure for recalling elected officials? It might be fun to mount a petition drive to have the County Attorney recalled.

I am not saying we could have him thrown out, but it might send him an effective message.

Posted by: Amanjyaku on December 20, 2004 05:25 PM

While I did write the article, I am not seeking an A.G. Opinion on the legality of free poker using points, nor am I out to stop the APL or other poker tournaments. I wrote my original article in response to questions I have received because of the growing popularity of poker. What is ironic is how much I play and how much I love the game. I have no authority to prosecute crimes, nor am I working with the TABC to actiely seek out tournaments.

It is possible I could be mistaken,. I am simply stating my interpretation of the law and everyone here is free to have theirs. I hope I am wrong in the long run, but I also know that the D.A. in Odessa has asked for an A.G. Opinion on this subject and we will all know sometime in the next year. If you really want change, start with the legislature and talk to your state representative about adding an exception to Chapter 47 of the Penal Code.

--Markus Kypreos

Posted by: Markus Kypreos on December 21, 2004 04:13 PM

My name is Jarod Jones. I am the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for BarPoker.com, the largest free poker company in the country. We play over 800 individual tournaments a month in 6 states. In Texas we play in San Antonio, Lubbock, Corpus Christi, and Kingsville.
We have seen no evidence at all to support Markus Kypreos' opinion that no consideration poker is even considered gaming. The term ‘gaming’ is specifically defined in Texas law. We do not fall under the rule of any law that is applied to gaming. Comparing what BarPoker.com and other companies do to an eight-liner machine clearly displays the ignorance of the attorney who made the comparison. There currently are no laws on the books in Texas to prevent what we are doing. If the city of Austin has a specific municipal code that would make it illegal, it has escaped our lawyers’ extensive research. The fact that we do not charge any buy-in nullifies any application of gaming law. To put it quite simply, you aren't gambling if you can't lose something of financial value. You also have to possess the thing of value that you could lose before the game begins, so not winning the prize does not make it gaming. So if what you are doing does not fall under the accepted term of ‘gaming’ or ‘gambling’, then you can’t charge anyone involve with anything to do with gambling.
The purpose of making this kind of no consideration entertainment illegal serves no purpose. We actually help the community by raising tax revenues and improving social interaction.
In Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri we are viewed in an extremely positive light by the anti-gambling folks. Many of the people that dislike gambling the most come out and play BarPoker because it does not cost any thing to participate. Some of them actually like playing cards, just not losing money while doing it.
The only thing that is being done that could be considered illegal is the slander that is being printed about our business. To express one’s opinion as if it law is a gross misrepresentation of the system. No matter what the law is, a Judge and/or Jury decide a point of law such as this, not an ill-advised District Attorney.
There is no case in Texas to set precedent over a decision like this, so no wonder it is drawing so much attention across the country, not just in Texas. Even lawyers can see that the free-poker craze is just beginning. My question is why they would not want the people that they work for to be able to participate in these tournaments.

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