Can you tell the difference between this "historical horse racing" machine and a slot machine?
If not, you're in good company... even those advocating for, authorizing, and implementing the use of the machiens claimed not to know if these were legal.
That's why the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission and the racetracks filed an "agreed case" in 2010. They asked the courts to determine whether their operation was illegal or constituted pari-mutuel wagering on horse races.
The Commission even brought in a consultant from New Jersey to provide a legal opinion on the macines' legality.
There's just a few problems with that...
1) He is not a lawyer;
2) He claimed there is no requirement that pari-mutuel wagering be mutuel, i.e. reciprocal;
3) He admitted he did not know the exact authority of the Commission or how far it goes;
4) He claimed the definition of pari-mutuel wagering is fluid and includes any type of wager the Commission approves; and
5) His firm was paid $860,849.67 by the machine's vendors and certain racetracks.
Before the Kentucky Supreme Court in 2013, Kentucky's Horse Racing Commission and racetracks misrepresented that they were seeking a determination of legality before operating the "historical horse racing" slot gaming. In reality, "historical horse racing" slot gaming machines had been approved by the Commission and were being operated at racetracks more than two years beforehand.
In face, this slot gaming has now been operating in the Commonwealth for over eight years and billions of dollars have been wagered... despite the legality of such machines still being weighed by the courts.
Kentucky's highest court is currently considering the issue and must decide whether it will preside over the largest expansion of gambling in the Commonwealth's history.
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