By Associated Press
Eutaw, AL – A judge blocked efforts by Alabama state troopers to inspect the electronic bingo machines at Greenetrack on Friday and one of the state's largest gambling halls remained open.
Several troopers, led by Public Safety Director Christopher Murphy, went to Greenetrack late Friday afternoon to inspect and test the machines.
The leader of the Governor's Task Force on Illegal Gambling, John Tyson, said they had a court order allowing the testing, but Greenetrack quickly got a court order from Circuit Judge Eddie Hardaway Jr. that blocked any action pending a court hearing June 28.
Tyson said he will appeal the judge's order to the Alabama Supreme Court. Tyson has been successful in getting the state's highest court to overturn similar orders stopping action against electronic bingo machines.
A casino official confirmed the business was operating normally Friday night.
Friday's visit was not like the raid by dozens of state troopers last year on White Hall Entertainment Center in Lowndes County or the attempts this year to raid Country Crossing in Dothan and Victoryland in Shorter. Only a handful of officers showed up.
"We were not going in with the purpose of seizing machines and carting them off," said Tyson, who was not present.
Greenetrack has remained open despite pressure from the governor's task force to close. The visit Friday came hours after Gov. Bob Riley appointed a new sheriff for the west Alabama county.
Riley chose George Cook, a law enforcement agent with the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, to replace Sheriff Ison Thomas, who died April 3 of cancer. Thomas had warned the task force it would not be welcome in the county, and other local officials had vowed to block the doors to Greenetrack. But the action Friday was without incident.
Most electronic bingo casinos in the state have closed under pressure from the governor's task force. Riley argues that the machines are illegal slot machines and can't be played in the state. Local officials say they generate tourism and tax dollars.