Those wacky Baltimore Ravens can’t seem to steer clear of the law, can they?
This time, it’s cornerback Corey Fuller, who was charged in Tallahassee, Florida, with felony possession of a handgun and misdemeanor gambling charges stemming from a high-stakes poker game held at his house. Reportedly, Fuller had been raking 10% of the pot.
As someone who has hosted poker games at my house before, I can tell you this: raking the pot is a major no-no. In most states with anti-gambling laws, a rake — which guarantees that the house gets a share of every pot, thus encouraging them to keep the game running — automatically makes your game illegal. One friend of mine who hosts a regular limit game and occasional tournaments makes sure never to rake the pot to keep his games on the up-and-up.
What amazes me the most about this, though, is that Fuller’s game got action with that big a rake in effect. 10% should run afoul of state obscenity laws. Everyone was a sucker at that table. Fuller was probably the only one who ever made money on that game…