Short Extension Granted to USA in Online Gambling Case

According to our reliable sources, they tell us: In the US District Court of New Jersey, Trenton Division, papers were filed today to grant a motion on behalf of the US Department of Justice and the co-defendants, giving them a short period longer to respond to charges brought against them by the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA).

iMEGA is suing the US Department of Justice, US Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and the Federal Trade Commission, seeking a judgement for a temporary restraining order on the enforcement of the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006).This Act prevents American-based credit card companies and banks from processing payments to online gambling businesses with violators subject to civil and criminal penalties including imprisonment.

Jacqueline Coleman Snead, Trial Attorney in the Washington, DC office of the US Department of Justice’s Civil Division, filed the latest request just days before the initial deadline was due to pass.  The original case was filed on June 5th with a response to iMEGA’s complaint due by August 17th.  The latest motion, granted by the Honorable Mary L. Cooper, means that the co-defendants now have until September 4th to fully reply to the charges made against them. Which is a much shorter period than expected by the US DOJ.

IMEGA alleges that UIGEA infringes American’s basic Constitutional rights and sets a dangerous precedent for i-commerce by criminalizing the transmission of money if the end result is illegal in some unspecified place.

Eric Bernstein, attorney for iMEGA said “The purpose of the UIGEA is to prevent Americans from engaging in their fundamental rights to conduct their lives in the manner the wish to live it, to be free from the Government imposing public morality in the privacy of one’s own home.”

Author: GamesAndCasino