United States v. Mertis Washington

KENNEDY, Circuit Judge.

Defendant, Mertis Washington, appeals from his conviction for operating an illegal gambling business under 18 U.S.C. § 1955(a). Defendant argues that the Michigan gambling statutes prohibiting private lotteries which provide the basis for his federal conviction under section 1955(a) are arbitrary and unreasonable and thus violate the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Defendant also charges that Michigan’s prohibition of competition in the lottery business violates the Sherman Antitrust Act. 15 U.S.C. § 1 et seq. We find no merit to defendant’s…