Tagged: Attorney General Luther Strange VictoryLand casino

A Macon County judge has refused to step aside from deciding what to do about gambling machines and cash seized from VictoryLand casino in Shorter.

State Attorney General Luther Strange had asked Circuit Judge Tom Young Jr. to recuse himself on grounds that he is prejudiced against the state's evidence. Young ruled at a hearing Tuesday that he is not prejudiced and will remain on the case rather than sending it to another judge. A spokesman for the attorney general says he is evaluating the next move.

VictoryLand in Shorter will resume betting on simulcast horse and dog races on Friday.

Owner Milton McGregor said the simulcast operation will open at 10:30 a.m. and wagering will start at 11 a.m.

The entire VictoryLand operation has been closed since the state attorney general raided its casino Feb. 19. The casino remains closed. McGregor said he's happy to put some of the employees back to work in the simulcast operation. He said the simulcast races will be offered Wednesdays through Sundays.

The state attorney general's office used a century-old gambling case to get a rare, but not unprecedented, search warrant to raid VictoryLand casino in Shorter.

Macon County Circuit Judge Tom Young initially refused to give the attorney general a search warrant. Attorney General Luther Strange appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court. He cited an 1899 case where a justice of the peace denied an arrest warrant based on an incorrect interpretation of the law, and the Supreme Court ordered it issued.