Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein Issues Memo to U.S. Attorneys on the Recently Published OLC Opinion “Reconsidering Whether the Wire Act Applies to Non-Sports Gambling”

In the January 15, 2019 memorandum to all U.S. Attorneys, the Deputy Attorney General set a 90-day grace period on implementing the Office of Legal Counsel’s (OLC) new opinion during which federal prosecutors should not apply the Wire Act to non-sports-related betting or wagering.  This 90-day grace period will allow anyone affected to review the opinion and bring their gambling-related operations into compliance, if necessary.  The Deputy Attorney General also indicated that, to ensure continuity across the country, any Wire Act charges must be reviewed and approved by the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.  This new review-and-approval requirement will be codified in the Justice Manual.