Historical racing games at Red Mile to temporarily close after court decision
Keeneland and Red Mile announced Sunday that their historical racing operations would temporarily be closed after the Kentucky Supreme Court declined their petition to rehear a case regarding the legality of some games.
In September, the Kentucky Supreme Court found that some historical racing games were not legal. Historical racing games allow a person to bet on races that have already happened using a slot-like machine. The games have been used at multiple gambling parlors in Kentucky, including the one at Red Mile that is jointly operated by Keeneland and Red Mile.
The operations at Red Mile will close at the end of business on Sunday and a reopening date hasn’t been set, according to the track’s website.
The Kentucky Supreme Court’s opinion and order reversed a decision in 2018 by the Franklin County Circuit Court that approved the games. The state Supreme Court’s decision, which said that the Franklin County court had applied the incorrect legal standard, sends the case back to the Franklin County court.
The Supreme Court’s opinion stated that the systems used for the historical racing machines do not use pari-mutuel wagering, or a wagering pool. Pari-mutuel wagering on racing is the only type of gambling, other than “charitable” gambling and the lottery, that is legal in Kentucky.
Gov. Andy Beshear has previously said that losing the historical racing operations in Kentucky would be “devastating” to the horse industry and the state budget. He has also said that he and others are working to find a “path forward” for the historical racing games.
Keeneland and Red Mile released the following statement Sunday on the Kentucky Supreme Court’s decision not to rehear the case:
“We were disappointed the Kentucky Supreme Court denied our petition for rehearing. At this time, Keeneland and Red Mile have made the very difficult decision to temporarily close historical horse racing operations until there is more clarity surrounding the situation. We have confidence the Kentucky legislature will continue its efforts to protect jobs and state revenue generated by historical horse racing, as well as protect Kentucky’s signature horse racing industry.”
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission said in a statement last week that they will act in accordance with any judgment entered by the Franklin County Circuit Court. As of last week, the Franklin County court had not entered any judgment since the Kentucky Supreme Court sent the case back to the lower court.
Herald-Leader reporter Janet Patton contributed to this report.
This story was originally published January 24, 2021 at 1:10 PM.
