The buyers? According to federal prosecutors, those who would benefit most: casino owners who made a killing from gamblers attracted to the flashing lights and colors of the electronic machines.
The trial against two sitting senators and two former ones, a well-known casino owner and four others lasted more than two months that included a week of deliberations by jurors who Thursday delivered a stunner of their own — no convictions.
"The jury didn't give the government a thing, not a single thing," defense attorney Susan James said.
The inquiry started when three Republican legislators told the FBI they were offered campaign contributions if they would support the legislation.
The three used devices to record phone calls and meetings. The FBI wiretapped phones in a yearlong probe that coincided with former Gov. Bob Riley creating a gambling task force to shut down privately operated casinos. He contended they were illegal slot machines, while proponents portrayed them as a high-tech version of paper bingo, which is legal in some Alabama counties.
Legislators tried to pass electronic bingo bills in 2009 and 2010. Both failed.
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