A King County judge has upheld Washington’s law making it illegal to play poker for money online.

A Seattle-area attorney and poker aficionado had filed a lawsuit last year challenging the state’s right to regulate international online gambling. A 2006 revision to a state statute added online gambling to the list of electronically transferred gambling activities banned in the state.

The lawsuit claimed the state has no jurisdiction over online gaming, which takes place among individuals from around the world and through companies typically located overseas.

However, King County Superior Court Judge Mary Roberts said it was not proven that the state law unfairly protected gambling interests inside the state at the expense of interests outside the state, adding that the state’s historically strict prohibition on gambling influenced her ruling.

The plaintiff says he may press forward to the state Supreme Court if necessary.

Online gambling is a Class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of $10,000 - no cases have been prosecuted.

(Seattle Times)