New Jersey governor to join challenge to sportsbetting law

ESPN reports that a legal challenge based on the constitutionality of the 1992 Professional Amateur Sports Protection Act and lodged by New Jersey Senator Ray Lesniak earlier this year is to be supporter by the state’s governor, Jon Corzine.
The publication reports that Corzine will this week be filing a brief in support of Lesniak’s contention in Newark’s US District Court that the law is unconstutional and violates state rights.
The ESPN piece informs that Corzine is reacting to the state of Delaware’s decision to approve a sportsbetting lottery despite threats from the National Football League, and that the governor has considered the nationwide financial crisis and a recent poll indicating the majority of New Jersey residents want sportsbetting in deciding to take up the challenge.
It also opines that the Governor’s overt support for Lesniak’s action enhances the lawsuit’s chances of getting the federal sports betting ban overturned. Such a direct assault by a state claiming that its rights have been trampled on by a federal law strengthens the case, many legal scholars have said.

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