8-9-2010
Today it looks like Bob Riley has jumped the last hurdle to stop SLOT MACHINES in Alabama.
Maybe the initiative will take the next step and raid a closed Victoryland ?
The FBI will round up enough corrupt politicians that some one will spill the beans for a shorter stint in a federal golf club .
Who should be really ashamed ?
The long list of WASHED UP Country music has beens that came to this state to prey on it's most vulnerable citizens .
McGregor has lived a lifetime of allegations of his evil ways .
George Jones, Lorrie Morgan , Randy Owen , and others, you all had the chance to throw your hands up and declare you were misled and wanted no part of illegal gambling .
NOPE , instead you participated in political advertisements trying to convince the citizens of Alabama you they were being " disenfranchised "
We all know you did it for the money, greed , plain and simple .
Shame on you for trying to manipulate an election in a state you do not reside in for FINANCIAL GAIN !
Hopefully your greed will be rewarded , as your failure to bail out when the time was right , you will qualify to be sued when the Wall Street bankers and high profile investors come looking for their money.
87 million for a SLOT MACHINE PALACE , that is illegal and can not open the doors. Where will the money come form to repay the investors?Retaining lawyers to defend ourself in class action suit is VERY EXPENSIVE . How good was the lawyer that approved the contract you signed ? Let's hope he was the best one on the planet. either way you can look forward to the fact the lawsuits WILL come ,and keep coming .
IRONIC huh ? You were to vain to sing in venues like Atlantic City or Biloxi , and soom you may find yourself begging for a gig like that just to get a good meal and drown your pain in liquor
Milton McGregor has released a statement saying Victoryland would shut down on August 9 for a brief time , then ONLY the dog racing operation would resume on august 12 .
Who are the players in this fiasco ?
* Milton McGregor-----Owner of Victoryland in Shorter Alabama and at one time , a business partner of Paul Bryant jr. Bryant and McGregor parted ways and Bryant went on to build a multi state empire of para mutel based greyhound parks.
* Bob Riley---- 2 term governor of Alabama.Riley took control of the initiative to stop illegal gambling in Alabama after Attorney General Troy King tried on numerous attempts to prevent investigation and prosecution of illegal gambling in the State .
* Troy King-----Attorney General who has used various tactics to stop the investigation of illegal gambling in Alabama.The Supreme court has ruled against AG King on numerous occasions , and now the voters have decided that King is not deserving to be on the ballot November 2nd.
* John Tyson----Attorney General for Mobile county appointed by Riley to head task force on gambling after King would not enforce the laws of Alabama
* Department of Justice----- launched investigation on corruption surrounding buying of votes to make Bingo/ slot machines legal in Alabama .
* FBI----- running wiretaps ( possible sting operations also) and providing feet on the street for DOJ .
* ABI----- Alabama Bureau of Investigation
* Roger Bedford-----Senator (D) representing the 6th district and author of " Bingo Bills "
* Ronnie Gilley---- Developer behind " "Country Crossing ", a bingo hall and country music themed destination near Dothan Alabama.
* Larry Langford-----Former Mayor of Birmingham , convicted on 60 counts ofconspiracy, bribery, fraud, money laundering, and filing false tax returns in connection with a long-running bribery scheme. Long time advocate and author of legislation to award McGregor gambling sites in and around Birmingham .
Won 555 jack pots at Mcgregor's casino for over 1.5 million dollars . Many times winning jackpots in rapid succession of mere hours , won 275 jack pots in 24 days , won more than 19 jackpots in one day on more than one occasion.
Bingo is legal under certain conditions in Alabama .
The law states it must be for CHARITABLE purposes .
ALABAMA BINGO FILES collection of newspaper articles about illegal gambling
Mcgregor's Victoryland has revenues of 637 million ( after payouts of winning jackpots ) for the past 4 years . Gross Profits amount to 503 million .Charitable donation are a STAGGERING 4.4 million , less than 1 %
View the information taken from court documents HERE
What is the story behind all of this ?
Below is a BRIEF look at the last 2 years
August 25, 2008 ---- Mayor Langford produces and releases a video advancing the idea of letting the voters decide on Horse racing and Bingo .
The video fails to disclose that the proposed bill is written so that ONLY McGregor would be awarded the license at his Horse racing facility ( which had already failed once ) MAYOR'S VIDEO
December 1 , 2008-----Larry Langford ARRESTED by FBI on Corruption charges.
December 2008----- Governor Bob Riley creates " Illegal gambling task force "
March 6 , 2009----John Tyson acting A.G. of Mobile conducts slot machine RAID
April 5 , 2009----- Riley and King take different views on electronic gambling
May 6, 2009----- Bingo Bill dies in Senate
July 9 , 2009----- Bally Gaming enters bingo fight
October 5 , 2009-----White Hall Mayor pleads guilty in BIngo land sale scandal A.G. Troy King tells Mayor he can't run for office for 2 years and has to repay the 46 K he stole . GEEE that's tough commit a felony theft for 46 K and the AG knocks it down to a misdemeanor ? TOUGH ! really tough punishment for an elected official stealing from the citizens who elected him.
October 8, 2009-----Lawsuit filed alleges Langford won rigged jackpots.The real hypocrisy is that Langford claims he is broke and needs a free lawyer, plus he inquires if some one is having him followed ".Story here
November 5 , 2009----- State files $ 72 million dollar Tax lien against Bingo operation in Greene county .The typical response is " politically motivated , not " we are innocent ". Just another grain to support that gambling and corruption go hand in hand . $72 million , wow that more than a simple mistake isn't it ? Story here
November 13, 2009---- Alabama Supreme court ruling closes down White Hall Bingo hall.
The court ruled that the games at White Hall must meet six criteria,including numbers being announced one by one and players being requiredto mark their cards.
This ONE requirement is sufficent enough to make all the so called " electronic bingo machines " illegal , yet corrupt judge , after corrupt judge will continue their efforts to block future raids .
January 6, 2010-----Circuit Judge P.B. McLauchlin signed a restraining order halting a planned raid at " Country Crossing " . Funny that Country Crossing closed the facility down on Tuesday night ? This is the first of such events that suggest that powerful people at the middle of the SLOT MACHINE controversy are informed of upcoming law enforcement plans and court rulings before they become public knowledge . Dothan Eagle story here
January 22, 2010----- McGregor admits he has employees on his payroll following state law enforcement officials. WOW ! is it legal to hire a private investigator to follow law enforcement officials around and document their movements and actions ? When you are Milton McGregor and those in L.E. are trying to shut down your piggy bank that is fed by poor people , I guess anything goes . Of course, having the head of the task force caught winning $2,300 from a slot machine in Mississippi sure makes good headlines . How would one know that a person won that much money ? Were laws violated because McGregor's PI saw anther person's W9-G? Story here
January 29, 2010----- State Troopers arrive at 4 A.M. at Country Crossing and Victoryland to conduct a raid for illegal slot machines . Lawyers met the troopers at BOTH locations to prevent them from entering the facilities.
Surely it is hard to conduct two raids 100 miles apart ,that involve over 100 vehicles at each site . Just another hint that some one is passing info to the Casino owners in the state .
Country Crossing decides to shut down until further notice .
February 1, 2010-----Lt. Mike Reese of the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board
( ABC BOARD ) testifies before Federal Judge Myron Thompson that the machines do not meet the standards for legal " bingo machines " as defined by the White Hall Supreme court ruling from November 13, 2009. John Tyson submits that the Federal court should not be involved as there is no constitutional right to profit from illegal gambling.
AP story here
Birmingham News story
Thompson's ruling makes it a STATE issue not a federal issue .Thompson's opinion states Country Crossing and the task force have adequate remedies in state court and the legality of the machines is "an essentially state-law issue."
That ruling makes it clear that the raids should go forward , and then lawsuits could be filed if needed .
February 1, 2010---- Victoryland decides to shut it's door for " upgrades to food and beverage computers " . Come on , now if they were going to take down the servers and it was going to take DAYS to accomplish the upgrade , then the plan would have been made MONTHS ago. Coincidence that this happens after the testimony before Judge Myron Thompson? AP story here
February 4, 2010----- Governor Riley schools A.G. Troy King on several points of law pertaining to the " charitable bingo amendment " that Country Crossroads is operating under . The issue of the machine really doesn't matter because Country Crossroads is violating these elements :
"The operation of bingo games for prizes or money by certain nonprofit organizations and certain private clubs for charitable, educational or other lawful purposes shall be legal in Houston County."
No where does the amendment say its purpose is "generally to allow bingo," or use any language to suggest that intent. If that were the purpose of the amendment, surely it would say that.
As for as paying employees, the amendment says this:
"One hundred percent of the net revenues derived from operating bingo games shall be designated and expended for charitable or educational purposes."
And this: "No nonprofit organization or club may pay consulting fees, any compensation or salary to any individual or entity for any services performed relating to operating or conducting any bingo game."
Riley pounds home the point made by John Tyson that King was not doing his job on February 3,2010 View the Huntsville times story here
February 5, 2010----- Greenetrack surrenders liquor license . Give the Greenetrack owners their due , as they discovered this important loophole and closed it :
"AnyABC Board licensee expressly consents and authorizes agents of the ABCBoard, as well as other commissioned law enforcement officers havingproper jurisdiction, at any time, to enter and search the premises,observe the operation, and otherwise enforce state laws, and rules andregulations of the ABC Board in or about said premises, without awarrant," the state said in a court brief filed Tuesday in Macon County.
So now we know that a warrant was NEVER required to raid the SLOT MACHINE GAMBLING HALLS .
The state Supreme Court on Thursday handed Gov. Bob Riley a victory and overturned a temporary restraining order that blocked last week's raid attempt at VictoryLand.
The Supreme court ruled that circuit courts CAN NOT BLOCK LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS !
Tuscaloosa News report
February 19, 2010-----A lawsuit has been filed in a federal court in Alabama alleging that Milton McGregor, owner of VictoryLand, has rigged the machines to cheat customers.view the lawsuit here
March 01, 2010----Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson to attend pro-bingo rally Saturday in Montgomery. AP story This was thrown against the wall and the race bait didnt stick and it did not happen , although Jesse came to town and decided he was WAY OUT OF HIS LEAGUE and folded his tents and limped out of town to seek easier targets to extort money from, via his rainbow racial coalition extortion corporation.
March 3 , 2010----- Langford's tax returns reveal he won 555 jackpots totally 1.5 million . More coincidences that illustrate Gambling and corruption are arm in arm in pay offs , scandals , and illegal activity in Alabama .Birmingham News story on Langford's tax returns
March 5 ,2010----- Victoryland to reopen . McGregor declines to let Tyson to inspect machines prior to opening , despite numerous statements that he had nothing to hide and would welcome an inspection .McGregor has surrendered his liquor license,and is ready to ply not so smart gamblers with his miniscule pay outs . AP story
March 5, 2010----- Judge Tom Young issues order blocking Victoryland raid . Another mere coincidence that McGregor could open a 1 and the Judge issues the order and AP has it on the wire 2 1/2 hours later. Young will demonstrate time and again that he will issue a n order to block raids at Victoryland for almost any reason . Sources claim he hasn't used the " sky is blue " as a last ditch effort . AP story
March 22, 2010-----Troy King announces he is taking over the Governor's task force on gambling . King has thrown wrench after wrench into the task force's operation and now he has decided he will just take it over . Allegations are that just about everyone in Alabama has taken pay off from gambling bosses , yet King leads the pack in actions that would support a theory that he is the puppet for illegal gambling interests in Alabama .Un known to most voters that King is being eyed by both Keith Olbermann and Saturday night live after he made these remarks in the press conference"As soon as a definitive ruling is obtained, I will lead the aggressive enforcement of the law,"
King made the statement AFTER he (King) asked that Tyson, who is also district attorney for Mobile County, turn over all evidence collected by the task force.
Mere coincidence he wants all the evidence ? story here
March 23, 2010---Governor Bob Riley says he will not turn over command or any evidence to Troy King for task force on gambling .Birmingham News story Riley will wait for Supreme court to decide . Not a big deal , gambling interests are clogging the judicial system with all kinds of motions and law suits that have ZERO chance of winning, but it buys then time and for Victoryland its worth about $1.5 million dollars day in profit. With that kind of money floating around , little surprise that a plethora of elected officials are more than happy to help stall the raids against the illegal gambling operations .
March 30, 2010-----Mobile County Commissioner Stephen Nodine said Tuesday that District Attorney John Tyson Jr.'s statewide gambling investigations are hurting crime-fighting and draining budgets in Mobile. Doesn't sound like a big deal, except......Nodine is arrested May 15th on drug charges , and again on May 25th for Murder . Nodine also has a Federal gun charge to contend with that erupted from the other arrests .Press Register story
April 1 , 2010-----FBI and ABI question lawmakers in " Bingo " probe . Pro Bingo factions will try and spin this and say that Washington D.C. is doing Bob Riley a favor and playing politics at his request . SURE , a governor who is very critical of OBAMA. TWO Senators that have voted NO on everything that can , and Sessions is often the lead crusader in exposing radical , corrupt , and CRIMINAL appointees Obama tries to slip by the American people . A State that Obama was soundly defeated in , and a state that every REpresentative and Senator voted AGAINST Obamacare .
full story here
April 5 , 2010----Two of the three senators who provided the swing votes to pass an electronic bingo bill in the Alabama Senate received campaign contributions from a Montgomery lobbyist whom the FBI tried to interview within hours of the vote.
Jarrod Massey is a lobbyist for among others, Country Crossing .
full story
April 6, 2010----Senator offered 250K for his yes vote on Bingo. Not entirely unbelievable , but the twist is , the offer was made before the Senator was elected !! WOW now that's deep pockets and leaving no stone unturned . Bribe everyone that could POTENTIALLY be bale to vote one day in your interests. Bribe , early , bribe often .
Alabama Sen. Paul Sanford says that, shortly before he was elected last year, a lobbyist representing electronic bingo interests offered him $250,000 if he would commit to voting yes on a bingo bill.
Sanford identified that lobbyist as Jarrod Massey, whose clients include the Country Crossing electronic bingo casino in Dothan. Another Senator has made similar allegations . Birmingham News story here
April 7,2010----Task force asks Supreme Court to verify the task force can operate in all 67 counties .
AP STORY
April 11, 2010----- Two lawmakers admit to wearing wires to help in FBI investigation . WOW, FEDS in Alabama and have people wired ? During legislative sessions?
full story here
April 13, 2010-----Candidate for Governor , Ron Sparks (D), pays back HALF MILLION DOLLAR LOAN . Ron Sparks who has been a vocal proponent of legalized gambling announced he has paid back a 500K loan.AP story Not a remarkable story in itself, but according to banking experts , Sparks does not have the assets to get a loan of that size....because he had not reported large assets or large amounts of income on the annual financial disclosure statements he filed with the State Ethics Commission, and it was unclear how he could afford to loan his campaign $500,000.
Sparks would not explain initially what financial assets supported the loan and why they didn't show up on his ethics statements.
May 21, 2010-----Supreme Court rules against Troy King and says Riley and task force are legal.
The court ruled that Gov. Bob Riley had the authority to appoint that task force and the authority to continue to run it. "The council (task force) authorized by the governor had the right to represent the state in this case and to see it through to completion." This and the voters who voted against King in the primary means Mr. King is now on the sidelines until at least 2011.
full story here
June 2 , 2010-----Troy King defeated in primary. Luther Strange defeated King by a margin of 60 to 40 . The voters let King know his obvoius pandering to Illegal gambling wasn't going to continue. Might be interesting to see where Troy turns up at .It might be more interesting if he doesn't show up anywhere, could he have stashed enough cash to never work again ?
June 18, 2010-----Circuit Judge Eddie Hardaway Jr. blocks task force raid at Greenetrack. Previously Sheriff Ison Thomas had promised to arm citizens and challenge
Tyson with armed force if he attempted to raid the facility . Thomas passed away on April 3, and Riley appointed George Cook, a law enforcement agent with the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board.AP story
June 29, 2010----Supreme Court authorizes Greenetrack raid.
AP story
June 30,2010-----Circuit Judge Eddie Hardaway Jr. blocks task force raid at Greenetrack. Never mind the Supreme Court just ruled it was lawful. Judge Hardaway is not the only Judge in Alabama to set his own rules. Judge Hardaways is not even the only judge in the United States to make his own laws and rule as he wants and not as the law dictates. This is a BIG PROBLEM in America today . WE see it in AZ, NJ< and yes even against the will of the voters in California.
A spokesman for Gov. Bob Riley reacted angrily at Hardaway's latest rulings.
"We have a judge who is clearly and flagrantly ignoring the Alabama Supreme Court," Riley's communications director, Jeff Emerson, said in a statement. "Apparently, Judge Hardaway believes there is one law for him and Greenetrack and another for everyone else. It's clear he believes he does not have to pay attention to what the Supreme Courts says. When a judge ignores the orders of the Supreme Court, it threatens our entire judicial system, and that judge has got to go."
full story
July 1 , 2010-----Task force removes slot machines from Greenetrack.
Greenetrack is shut down. Local leaders have decried racism and complained that law enforcement has disbanded the county's largest employer. Perhaps the civic leaders can get lawyers and help all the pimps and drug dealers to get out of prison also ? It's an easy choice I guess,put in a hard days work at the catfish plant or collect welfare and play slot machines in the air conditioning.
Birmingham News story
July 8 , 2010----Federal prosecutors probing gambling legislation have subpoenaed the state pay stubs for nearly one-fourth of the Alabama Legislature.
WOW !! the FBI is looking for bribes and since bribes can be extended as winning s at a slot machine , futures contracts for cattle futures , or any number of creative ways .Full story
July 21, 2010----- Victoryland charitable contributions less than 1% . Victoryland collected 637 million dollars ( after pay outs to winners in a 4 year period . $503 million is the amount left after paying jackpot winnings and leases for the SLOT MACHINES . Victoryland gave 4.4 million to charity . Milton could take the 162 million he made in 2008, buy a 1 year JUMBO CD and earn 2.268 million before tax .He gave away 1.3 million ? Heck Wall Street crooks cant cook deals like this up
Birmingham News Story
July 25, 2010------BINGO victims file lawsuit to recoup losses.
The law -- 8-1-150 -- says contracts founded upon gambling are void. "Any person who has paid any money or delivered any thing of value lost upon any game or wager may recover such money, thing, or its value by an action commenced within six months from the time of such payment or delivery," according to the law.
I wonder which 12 people will have pity for Milton and the reported 1 BILLION he has paid himself as a " Bingo Consultant " . Maybe even more fun will be when the lawyers make it public knowledge that these slot machines were not set at the 92% or higher pay out rate one would encounter in Biloxi or Las Vegas ? Imagine the outrage when it is revealed the payout out is 40% or lower?
loser lawsuit
July 30, 2010-----Alabama Supreme Court justices clear way for raid at VictoryLand by governor's task force.AP story
August 2 , 2010----- Tyson asks Judge Young's order preventing raids at Victoryland. Judge Young is the poster child for judges who make their own rules and pander to special interests. AP story
August 6,2010-----The Alabama supreme Court has sent Judge Tom Young a message. Tom, play time is over , you are a hack , move out of the way because law and order is coming to the lawless welfare community of Shorter Alabama.Predictably Judge Tom Young thumbed his nose at the Supreme Court ruling overturning his ( Young's) "hack" order. Tyson wasted no time as he knew that Young is either the biggest idiot on the planet or deep in some one's pocket ( maybe both ?)
The Supreme Court has set a time of 4 P.M. August 9th , for Young to allow the raids.
AP story
August 9 2010----Victoryland closes BEFORE the 4 P.M. deadline . Victoryland entrances were blocked off before 8 A.M. to prevent bingo victims from entering the casino.
McGregor has run out of pawns and legal motions to stop Tyson from entering his casino .
McGregor is adamant that his operation is 100% legal, and that he is closing to protect the public ( bingo victims ) and his employees. Here is a NOVEL idea , while you have Victoryland closed down ( at a cost of 1.5 million in profit per day ) why not let the Task force come in , examine your operation and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt you are ABOVE BOARD . NOPE , better to lose millions every day . The good news is the dog racing operation ( this is the front the bingo operation runs under ) will re open on the 12th .
Milton is out of business , but for how long ? Until we get another governor?
Maybe longer the FBI is here to round some criminals up and my guess is , that enough will get caught in the net that some one turns on " Uncle Milty "
Birmingham News story
McGregor's statement
August 9, 2010-----Gov. Bob Riley spokesman: Milton McGregor running away like 'scalded dog'.
McGregor has been full of talk about how he is 100% legal , but once again once the crooked judges are swept away he closes up to prevent " CZAR Bob Riley " from letting " uncle Milty " from having his day in court. McGregor is due a vacation , how does BRAZIL sound ? He could go to D.C. but hey it would be a BIG paycut .
Could the next step be to get a warrant to raid a CLOSED VICTORYLAND ?
Why not if it was a meth lab , or counterfeiting operation wouldn't the state need to go in and arrest them?
I wonder if McGregor has met Scrushy ?
How much of the MILLIONS McGregor has stole, and extorted from the poor undeserving bingo victims is not hidden away ?
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