A Pennsylvanian judge will rule if poker is gambling or not

A lawyer being charged with running illegal poker games for profit in Westmoreland County has filed a motion to have the charges dismissed, stating that as defined by the law in Pennsylvania poker is not gambling.

The 63 year old lawyer from the town of Derry was arrest and charged with several counts of holding illegal poker tournaments for profit.

Police state that the lawyer made more then $31,000 in profits from the three Poker tournaments in the town of Seward and that they have no idea how much he has made from his weekly poker games in the town of Hempfield.

The lawyers defence attorney wants the county judge to toss out all the charges against his client because there are not laws on the books that outlaw poker.

The motion to dismiss states that not only are there no laws on the books of Pennsylvania making Poker illegal, however there have been several rullings by the courts in Pennsylvania that playing poker for money or any other prize does not fall under the heading of gambling or unlawful gambling in the state.

His lawyer also said that the states constitution can not be used to prosicute his client because of how vague the constitution.

Since before the lawyer was arrested he was advertising that his poker games were 100 percet legal in posters all over the surrounding townsmand on a web site.

The district attorney culd not be reached for comment.

The judge presiding over the case has scheduled a hearing later this year.