Lights out
A week after a Missouri convenience store chain removed video gaming terminals from its stores, the manufacturer of those machines has decided to halt operation of them in the state. On Friday, Torch Electronics turned off its machines at all retailers in Missouri in the face of legal pressure from state Attorney General Catherine Hanaway.
criminal proceedings create real uncertainty for our business”
“The U.S. Attorney’s office and the Missouri Attorney General have indicated they are going to move forward with criminal investigations and proceedings,” Torch Electronics said in a letter to retailers on Monday. “While we are confident in our position, criminal proceedings create real uncertainty for our business — and more importantly, they create risk for all of you. We take that seriously, and we want to do everything we can to protect you.”
According to the Missouri Independent, Torch Electronics told retailers that it will remove the machines, which closely resemble slot machines, if the retailer requests it.
Pre-reveal workaround
Certain forms of gambling are legal in Missouri, including riverboat casinos and the state lottery, but slot machines in places like convenience stores and bars are not.
Torch machines show the player if the next spin will be a winner
Torch has been able to live in a legal gray area, however, by incorporating what it calls a “pre-reveal” feature on its games. Whereas on a regular slot machine, the player has no idea what the result of the next spin will be, thus making it a game of complete chance, Torch machines show the player if the next spin will be a winner.
Thus, there is no luck involved with the next spin since the player knows if it will be winner, and therefore, at least according to Torch, their products are not gambling machines. Opponents will argue that 1) chance still dictates the next spin, even if the result is known, and 2) knowing the result ahead of time just pushes the effect of chance to two spins away.
In a case involving one of Torch’s competitors, a judge in February said that Torch’s slot machines “meet the statutory definition of ‘gambling device’ and are therefore illegal under Missouri law when played outside a licensed casino.”
State coming for illegal slots
While video gaming terminals have been able to survive in Missouri despite legal challenges, the state is now starting to crack down. In March, Briarwood One Stop owner Himanshu Patel was charged with two counts of promoting gambling for having video gaming terminals in his convenience store.
“The message we want to communicate to the stores that have these machines in them is, no matter what you’ve been told by the vendors trying to place these machines in your stores, they’re illegal,” AG Hanaway said at a press conference. “The best way to stay out of trouble is to unplug them, shut them down, perhaps even return them to whoever delivered them to your store.”
The beginning of enforcement actions caused convenience store and gas station chain Rapid Roberts, which has 34 locations in Missouri, to remove all slot machines from its stores. Those machines were made by Torch Electronics.
