United States v. DiCristina
United States Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit
726 F.3d 92 (2013)
- Written by Elliot Stern, JD
Facts
Lawrence DiCristina (defendant) operated a poker club in in New York. DiCristina was charged with violating the federal Illegal Gambling Business Act (IGBA) and was found guilty by a jury. DiCristina moved for a judgment of acquittal on the ground that poker was not prohibited under the IGBA because poker was not a game of chance. The IGBA included a list of business operations that constitute gambling, all of which involved games of chance. DiCristina argued that the only way to give effect to this list was to interpret gambling under the IGBA as limited to games of chance. DiCristina conceded that poker constituted gambling under New York law. The district court judge determined that the IGBA was ambiguous but held that the IGBA was limited to games of chance and entered a judgment of acquittal for DiCristina. The prosecution (plaintiff) appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Straub, J.)
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