Poker rooms in Dallas have been the subject of debate in City Hall for years, but that might be coming to an end soon.to operate for quite some time now, it's starting to look like the new plan won't leave operators of poker rooms flush for much longer.
There’s an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section if the gambling occurs in a private place, no person receives any economic benefit other than personal winnings and, except for the advantage of skill or luck, the risks of losing and the chances of winning are the same for all participants. Under state law, a private place means a place to which the public does not have access.
“This plan seems to help address the provisions of making these clubs private, but this model could be interpreted also as operating an illegal lottery,” Dupre said. “This land use seems to be a Band-Aid approach to figuring out how to commercialize gaming laws that were designed to protect individuals hosting a friendly game in their private homes.”
“The reason I’m against it is because staff has created an unnecessarily complicated regulatory system for this,” he continued. “We already have a classification called private club that does everything staff is proposing here except that it allows for normal stuff like serving alcohol and food. They’re proposing some kind of poker room world where you can’t have food and drink. It doesn’t even sound fun.
“The reason I’m against it is because staff has created an unnecessarily complicated regulatory system for this." – Philip Kingston, attorneyCommittee member Nathaniel Barrett asked why poker or other gambling would have to be limited to an accessory use. Vandenberg said state law dictates that you can’t make money from gambling, so poker would have to be a small piece of the business.