Circuit Court Judge Shepherd upholds legislature’s ban on so-called ‘gray machines’

By Liam Neimeyer
Kentucky Lantern

A Kentucky judge has upheld the legislature’s 2023 ban of so-called “gray machines,” agreeing with the attorney general that the law does not violate free speech or equal protection guarantees and isn’t unconstitutional special legislation.

Franklin Circuit Court Judge Phillip Shepherd in his ruling Friday sided with arguments made by Attorney General Russell Coleman defending House Bill 594, which banned the slot-style machines commonly found in many bars and gas stations around the state.

Judge Phillip Shepherd

The machines’ moniker is derived from their murky legal status, an “allegedly gray area” that Shepherd referenced in his 52-page ruling. Opponents characterize the games as illegal gambling. Proponents refer to them as “skill games” and have argued a ban would let the horse racing industry monopolize gambling in the state. Churchill Downs had filed an amicus brief in defense of HB 594.

In his ruling, Shepherd wrote that plaintiffs, including “skill-based” gaming company Pace-O-Matic, had not proved their claim that HB 594 vi...