Motion in Online Poker Seizure May Be Decided Next Week

The motion by Costigan Media to unseal the warrants and affidavits associated with the seizure of over $30 million in online poker funds may be ruled on next week. Lawyers for the parent company of Gambling911 and the U.S. Government took to a New York courtroom on Monday.

The funds in question belonged to a Wells Fargo branch in San Francisco and were part of a seizure that affected over 24,000 online poker players. Costigan Media’s motion notes, “Although the warrant was issued a month ago and although the funds are now safely under the control of the government and in no danger of dissipation, the affidavit submitted in support of the warrant still remains under seal. So do any supporting documents relating to this Court’s decision to seal the warrant application.” FBI Special Agent Dana Conte swore to the affidavit, while Magistrate Judge Theodore Katz issued the warrant.

Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) Executive Director Joe Brennan, who spoke to Costigan Media representatives following Monday’s hearing, told Poker News Daily, “The judge had a hard time understanding why she should keep a warrant sealed after it’s been served. She said that she could understand the Government not wanting to reveal names of informants, but other than that, she didn’t understand why it should be kept sealed.” Following the hearing, attorneys for the U.S. Government met with the judge for an hour and 15 minutes behind closed doors. A decision should be handed down next week.

Many in the industry have expressed concern about the contents of the warrants and affidavits. However, according to Brennan, they are important in order to prevent future seizures by the Southern District of New York and other bodies: “The Government has seized $40 million from payment processors, but it’s actually online poker players’ money. No one knows why the Government did it. I think the players would want to know why their money has been seized. It’s better to know if the Southern District of New York will go after more money.”

Costigan Media, which owns the popular website Gambling911, filed a motion to open the warrants and affidavits associated with the seizure citing First Amendment rights. Brennan explained, “After a warrant is served, it’s supposed to be public record. The Government wants to keep it secret for some reason. That’s a violation of everyone’s rights.” Costigan Media’s motion cites cases involving other media outlets such as the Baltimore Sun, New York Times, Newsday, and Gannett, the latter of which publishes 84 daily newspapers in the United States.

At the helm of Costigan Media is Chris Costigan, who was upbeat following yesterday’s hearing. Brennan noted that the judge did not look down upon Gambling911 bringing a complaint under the First Amendment. Instead, she carefully tried to ascertain why the Government would want to keep documents under wraps. Brennan revealed, “The fact that the judge did not look down at Costigan Media doing business as Gambling911 was encouraging. Instead, she thought, ‘I have a media outlet that is making a First Amendment application and am taking them very seriously.’”

The United States Government cited “law enforcement concerns” as a contributing factor to keeping the seal on the warrants and affidavits. It also charged that First Amendment rights do not apply to seizure warrant applications. Now, it will be up to the judge in the case to decide if the reasons for the online poker funds seizure in early June will be brought into the public spotlight.

Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for more information.

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TIGHT - [1] A style of play that entails playing fewer hands than average. Antonym: LOOSE. [2] A FULL HOUSE.
SUITED - Two or more cards all the same suit. Ant: OFF-SUIT.
RACE - In tournaments it is sometimes convenient to remove all lower-denomination chips from play, as the remaining players' stacks tend to grow. Small chips are converted to larger chips and any odd chips are "raced off" in the following way: each player with odd chips places them in front of his stack and is dealt one card for each chip. Highest card (rank and suit) takes all the small chips and converts them to higher-denomination chips.
BACK DOOR - Applies to a hand that was made in the last card or two, specifically not a hand the player was originally planning on having. Most often applied to straights and flushes.
BURN - To discard the top card of the deck prior to dealing, usually done for every dealing round except the first. The theory being that if somehow the cards are marked (illegally) no one will know what card will next be dealt, only what card will be burned. This makes marked cards less of an advantage, hence tends to reduce cheating.
FLAT CALL - To call a bet. Emphasizes that the caller did not raise.

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