Nick Jenkins, who owns Betcha.com, and two of his employees, have been arrested and charged with breaking Internet gambling laws in the state of Louisiana.
Not sure if you all recall, but Betcha was the Seattle-based betting exchange that allowed users to welch on bets, therefore, they argued, it wasn't really gambling.
When the Washington State Gambling Commission met with Jenkins and told him that the site was breaking Washington state law, shutting it down, they mentioned that other states were interested in the goings on at Betcha.
Just one hour later, the site got its first customer from Louisiana.
Now Louisianna is one of the states that has tough laws on the books re: Internet gambling. The bettor made a total of four wagers for $35, and the site raked in $.70 in revenue from those bets.
The three bailed themselves out of jail, but apparently Louisiana, didn't want that to happen.
From Jenkins' blog on Betcha.com ...
The whole story is pretty unbelievable. You can read all of Jenkins latest blog postings here ...Turns out, Louisiana wanted us held without bail. Apparently they thought we were a flight risk, even though we all live here, and even though two of the three of us turned ourselves in. Fortunately the judge wasn't buying it: he let us go subject to our own personal recognizance.
http://www.betcha.com/Blogs
Judging by the tone of Jenkins' posts, he looks like a guy who might finally challenge the most ridiculous state laws (namely Washington's) that are choking the Internet gambling industry.