NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Distribution
PPA to Judge Wingate:
Don’t Play Scrooge to Kentucky Citizens
Urges that damage award, if actually sustainable, granted under 182-year-old statute be
refunded to Kentucky citizens whose money was lost
WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 24, 2015) – Today, John Pappas, executive director of the Poker Players
Alliance issued the following statement in response to Franklin Country Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate’s
ruling on Wednesday that the state was entitled to triple damages in the 2010 lawsuit against Amaya, the parent
company to PokerStars.
“Judge Thomas Wingate’s decision to use a centuries-old statute to collect almost $1 billion in damages from
PokerStars should benefit real Kentucky citizens whose money was lost, and not big-spending politicians and
government trial lawyers,” said Pokers Players Alliance (PPA) Executive Director John Pappas today. Judge
Wingate issued the judgement prior to ruling on a motion from the PPA to intervene in the case on behalf of the
players who actually lost money.
“Kentucky citizens and poker players are very disappointed that Judge Wingate chose to enter a judgement in
this matter prior to ruling on our motion to intervene,” said Pappas. “He should continue to allow PPA to make
its case that any damages collected, if actually sustainable, go to the citizens involved. Failure to do so would
demonstrate that this is just a big-government money grab aimed at enriching politically connected trial lawyers
and bailing out big-spending politicians.”
“The facts are very simple: This money was lost by Kentucky taxpayers who participated in online poker
against other Kentucky taxpayers on a platform provided by Poker Stars,” Pappas continued. “Therefore it is
the people, not the politicians and trial lawyers, who should be reaping the benefit.”
Pappas also expressed concern about on-the-record statements from the office of newly-elected Governor Matt
Bevin that appear to embrace Wingate’s ruling – effectively endorsing a brazen money grab by big government,
while allowing the rights of individual citizens and taxpayers to be completely disregarded.
“Governor Bevin ran on a platform of empowering hardworking taxpayers and reducing confiscatory
government policies,” said Pappas. “Yet the trial lawyers who represent state government are actively fighting
to prohibit Kentuckians who lost money on PokerStars to get their money back. If Governor Bevin really
believes Kentuckians were hurt, then he should support making them whole. If Governor Bevin, in fact,
supports the position taken by the governments’ trial lawyers, then he would be effectively be supporting the
kind of big-government money grab he repeatedly opposed and was elected to stop.”
“We urge the Governor to take a second look at this case, and consider our common sense position – that the
only people who should be able to recoup losses are the people who actually played and lost,” added Pappas.
“Letting the state seize this money based on some ancient statute is wrong both legally and morally.”
About The Poker Players Alliance
The Poker Players Alliance (www.theppa.org; http://twitter.com/ppapoker;www.facebook.com/theppa) is a
nonprofit membership organization comprised of over 1,000,000 online and offline poker players and
enthusiasts from around the United States who have joined together to speak with one voice to promote the
game and to protect poker players' rights.
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