Looking over the last few months, the Alabama Bingo issue has been the center of confusion, closure, seizures, and court hearings. The question of whether or not bingo should be legal finally was answered on Monday by Circuit Judge Robert Vance. Vance concluded and ruled that operating bingo machines in Walker County is illegal. Any business operating this bingo machinery will be forced to shut these machines down.

Many bigger questions are now popping up, one of which is whether this ruling will only apply to Walker County. Earlier this month similar rulings in Madison County has many wondering if the recent judicial act is binding throughout the entire state of Alabama.

Another anti-bingo ruling came out of Jefferson County and was identical to Walker County. Apparently digital bingo was not covered in earlier constitutional amendments. These amendments predominantly made bingo legal in a charitable setting; therefore, this kind of bingo is still legal.

Bingo machines still remain legal and regulated in other counties of Alabama, though. Until now, video bingo reportedly generated over $2 billion dollars in revenue from bingo wagering on a yearly basis in Walker County, so other counties will pick up the shafted bingo market.
At least paper bingo is still legal in many areas, thus creating a positive social environment for players and charities, which allows many people to enjoy the game while bringing in some extra cash when possible. The Walker County Sheriff’s office is in compliance with the recent court’s decision and is authorized to close all video bingo operations in Walker County. So if you live in Alabama and you want to play digital bingo, your options are very slim now, and you’ll either have to go to another county or chance your luck at online gambling.