Poker games and roulette wheels may be illegal in Howard County, but that doesn?t always mean people will be busted for playing.
“These are quality-of-life laws,” said retired Prince George?s County Circuit Court Judge Vince Femia, referring to part of a state law specific to Howard that prohibits games, such as cards, dice and roulette, even when they don?t involve money.
“They were passed at a time when people really believed these were important or that your soul would be saved by not playing cards in your home.”
The gaming law, which dates back to 1957, does not specify the venue. Similar quality-of-life laws include those outlawing adultery or blaspheming in church, and often they were passed to enforce a moral standard, Femia said.
One Columbia bar was recently fined for hosting a poker tournament.
But the law could technically be applied to people playing cards with their children or senior centers running pinochle games, said Mark Hemmis, owner of Phoenix Landing in Ellicott City.
Unless police are getting complaints, they won?t seek out violators, because it often costs more to enforce than to issue the violation fines, Femia said.
The enforcement on bars was prompted by complaints, said Liquor Inspector Detective Martin Johnson.
Violations technically could be issued to senior centers if police receive complaints, he said.
Many laws are not enforced, and with so many laws on the books, police enforce where they can, said Del. Gail Bates, R-District 9A.
“The question is: Do you delete them, or are the laws probably worth keeping on the books because they are a statement about who we are?” she said.
