Attorneys General call for DOJ to scrap 2018 Wire Act ‘reinterpretation’

Attorneys General from across the US have urged the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to rescind a formal legal opinion that found state-sanctioned online lotteries and casino could be subject to criminal prosecution under the federal Wire Act.

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Some 26 state Attorneys General, who are the top legal officers of their state or territory, signed a letter sent to US Attorney General Merrick Garland urging that DOJ issues a formal memorandum rescinding its 2018 opinion “Reconsidering Whether the Wire Act Applies to Non-Sports Gambling.”

That 2018 DOJ opinion reversed a 2011 position which held that the 1961 Wire Act applied to only sports betting, thereby making online lottery sales and other non-sports-related online gaming safe from federal prosecution.

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