Florida accidentally bans computers and smartphones

Florida, who can’t seem to get out of the business of passing weird laws that the rest of the country incessantly mocks, recently passed a new bill that expanded the definition of a slot machine to include any kind of connected computer that could conceivably be used as a gambling device. This was apparently the solution to bars and internet cafes using PCs as gambling devices to get around restrictions around the activity.

Florida’s new, expanded definition of a slot machine includes “any machine or device or system or network of devices” used to play games of chance or skill, which can be activated by not just inserting money, but an “account number, code, or other object or information.”

The flaw in the law is that it technically defines any device connected to the Internet as a potential illegal device; meaning computers, laptops, smart phones are all now technically against the law in Florida. It’s a stretch to interpret the law this way, but certainly not the biggest stretch in the history of misinterpretation of laws. In fact, there’s a current court case that the entire nation is paying attention to around one of their current laws and how it impacted Trayvon Martin. As Florida politicians point out, you would have to be a real douchebag to interpret the law this way and make trouble, but as the rest of the world points out there are plenty of douchebags in the world… and certainly a few of them live in the Sunshine State.

So, good news tech folks in Florida! You can go home… your work is officially illegal!