Last night, ABC's KAKE-TV interviewed me on air about the State of Kansas's ban of "pay-to-play" fantasy sports leagues.
So if you live in Kansas and are caught playing fantasy football, you could go to jail for up to six months. Crazy law? Yes. Should you be scared? No.
If I were arrested, my argument would be simple:
A convenience store is a "gambling place," since it's a place where, in addition to buying Cheetos and beef jerky, some customers buy lottery tickets. Yet we wouldn't expect these folks to get arrested.
So fear not, Kansans. If you get arrested for playing a game we all love, I'll represent you in court. I might not have a law degree, and actually, I might be busy that day, but it's the thought that counts.
So if you live in Kansas and are caught playing fantasy football, you could go to jail for up to six months. Crazy law? Yes. Should you be scared? No.
If I were arrested, my argument would be simple:
- Fantasy sports are not purely games of chance; they're largely games of skill. Everyone has an equal opportunity to win if they work hard enough and take educated risks.
- Kansas's lottery is a game of chance, yet it's entirely legal. In fact, the same statute outlawing fantasy sports appears to do the same for lotteries, defining gambling as "entering or remaining in a gambling place with intent to make a bet, to participate in a lottery or to play a gambling device."
A convenience store is a "gambling place," since it's a place where, in addition to buying Cheetos and beef jerky, some customers buy lottery tickets. Yet we wouldn't expect these folks to get arrested.
So fear not, Kansans. If you get arrested for playing a game we all love, I'll represent you in court. I might not have a law degree, and actually, I might be busy that day, but it's the thought that counts.