South Carolina is safer now
 

here is a link to the article which has also been posted below,
no need to lock the front door or set the alarm tonight, i'll still sleep safe and soundly now.

while gambling (to include poker) IS illegal in south carolina, there have GOT to be better uses for my tax dollars and the law enforcement's energy than this. Why were only TWO of the meth labs busted? safer to take down overweight middle aged men drinking beer and playing cards!

Folks were reportedly thrown to the ground and cuffed while search and citations were taking place. Cops reportedly came in with weapons drawn.

Not all laws deserve to be upheld to the same degree. How many cops lawyers and judges speed for example. Victimless crimes like neighborhood poker just do not rate in my book.

Link: click here

article:
Police poker bust reveals a full house
13 charged after raid on clubhouse at Greer subdivision

Posted Saturday, August 13, 2005 - 6:00 am


By Patricia Newman
STAFF WRITER
pnewman@greenvillenews.com
After placing the operation under surveillance and obtaining a search warrant, seven Greer police officers and an agent from the State Law Enforcement Division swooped in.

Their target: the Brushy Meadows subdivision clubhouse, according to police reports.

Charged, according to the incident report, were 13 players who police said had chipped in $100 plus $10 for refreshments to play poker.

Authorities hauled off chips, cards, money and a computer they said was used to track players' statistics, according to the incident report.

With a population of approximately 20,000, Greer had one homicide, six armed robberies, two meth lab busts and 60 burglaries in 2004, according to state crime statistics.

But authorities said state law is clear when it comes to gambling where money's on the table.

"There are no shades of gray in the gambling laws for South Carolina," said Mark Plowden, spokesman for Attorney General Henry McMaster. "Gambling is illegal in any form or method within state lines."

Lt. Chris Varner of the Greer police said the men were issued citations that carry a fine of $1,112.50 if convicted.

He said SLED notified Greer police that an informant had provided the tip.

"It's alleged criminal activity," said Kathryn Richardson with SLED. "We were requested to provide assistance and we did that."

None of the men charged was available for comment Friday.

Re: South Carolina is safer now
 

isnt the lottery technically gambling
or is it not because it benifits the state

Re: South Carolina is safer now
 

Had you not posted the link I would have thought you were joking.

But on the bright side the crime rate must be 0% now and the cops must find something to do.

Meth Lab 2 Poker Games 1

Maybe next they will raid a retirement community; I heard they have a wicket BINGO game on Sundays.

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Re: South Carolina is safer now
 

I'm from anderson, sc about 20 minutes from greer/greenville and played a 2/5 NL game tonight with two guys who were at the game. The cops did roll in with guns drawn but it never got out of hand. The players were on a break and most were standing outside. The cops handcuffed everyone there, of course, confiscated everything including the guys computer which was a loaner from work. Good luck explaining that.

It seems the cops weren't out to just bust a home game. General consensus is the cops were looking for something else. They showed up with drug dogs and a search warrant for the house and all the vehicles present.

It did cause a couple of games to get cancelled but there are still tons going on.