Sports betting in Md.: what’s legal, what’s not?

ahead of the n-f-l season — officials are expecting bets to top ninety-billion dollars this season. much of which — is actually illegal. 47 a-b-c’s lili zheng joins us live in the studio. lili — you spoke to an attorney this afternoon. in the state of maryland — what is considered legal? well, emily — not much. aside from state-controlled betting — like slot machines or games in casinos — wagers are prohibited. but as one attorney breaks it down — it appears the law has a lot of bark — but not a lot of bite. the manpower’s not there. you kind of get past the giggle factor, you know. is a prosecutor going to spend their time prosecuting a case where two friends betting a small amount of money? track 1 the answer to that — according to william hall — unlikely. hall — a criminal defense attorney in salisbury — tells 47 a-b-c it’s illegal to put money on sporting bets in the state of maryland. he says penalties vary between six-hundred and one-thousand dollars. any kind of online gambling’s illegal…any kind of friendly bet between two friends is illegal. if money exchanges hands over a wager, that’s illegal track 2 according to the american gambling association — football bets are expected to top 90-billion dollars this season. and 98 percent of that — is considered unlawful. hall explains that’s because maryland — like a majority of states in the u-s — prohibits gambling unless the state has some sort of control over it. through an informal survey — some football fans tell 47 a-b-c they had no idea what they considered fun bets between friends — was actually against the law. i think that’s pretty high, i mean…98 percent? i know there’s a lot of like legal betting, but 98 percent? that’s a big number track 3 and one denver broncos fan admits — he has had casual bets amongst his friends. but — he doesn’t see the harm. really, just because…that’s my favorite team, really. and just to…show who’s better, i guess the main thing is winning the money, for real. track 4 however — hall warns – while prosecution for illegal sports betting is rare — it’s not completely unheard of. there have been prosecutions here in wicomico county in the past where certain betting rings were broken up and those cases were prosecuted end earlier this summer — maryland comptroller peter franchot did propose regulations for daily fantasy sports betting in the state. according to him — regulations are needed to help ensure the games are fair and that winners pay appropriate state taxes. emily — alright — thank you, lili 47 a-b-c’s lili zheng reporting live in our studio tonight. and for the latest on that legislation — you can find it on our website — 47 a-b-c dot com.