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Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway defended her office’s crackdown on slot-style gaming machines at bars and gas stations as it faces legal challenges over the enforcement campaign.
In an interview with Gray Media’s Missouri Capitol Bureau, Hanaway addressed two lawsuits over the state’s efforts to remove the machines from businesses across Missouri.
The lawsuits allege the attorney general’s office pressured retailers to remove the machines through threats of prosecution and licensing action without giving operators an opportunity to respond.
Hanaway maintained that the machines violate Missouri law as they are games of chance in which players cannot influence the outcome. “If you go and you play this machine and you can’t affect the outcome, then it’s a game of chance, and it’s illegal in Missouri,” she said.
She said her office has secured agreements with several of the state’s largest machine operators to remove the devices and has worked with the Missouri Highway Patrol to seize machines through search warrants in about 10 counties.
Hanaway added that businesses under investigation are subject to the same legal process as any other criminal case, noting that offering or promoting illegal gambling is a crime under Missouri law.
A hearing for one of the lawsuits is scheduled for Aug. 12 in Cole County Circuit Court.