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Proceedings and Debates of the 1967 Constitutional Convention
Volume 104, Volume 1, Debates 1688   View pdf image (33K)
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1688 CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF MARYLAND [Dec. 4]

\vas before the Eney Commission except
that which pertains to bingo.

DELEGATE SHERBOW: All I can say
is that I consider the Eney draft one of
the greatest accomplishments of our time.
I also consider that if we were to follow
the Eney draft or the Constitutional Com-
mission Draft blindly without the slightest
change, there was no need for us to come
here. I also say to you that the President
of this Convention in his first address made
it perfectly clear that this was to be a
guide, a good guide, I think it is an ex-
cellent guide, but it is not one that is to
be rubber stamped.

THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Burdette.

DELEGATE BURDETTE: Mr. Chair-
man, I should like to ask the Chairman of
the Committee whether the word "sanc-
tion", which appears in the language he is
using, means such as permitted or allowed
or whether he is using such meaning as
conducted directly or indirectly.

If I may amplify that, sir, earlier in
your conversation, Judge Sherbow, you
gave me the impression that you desired on
behalf of the Committee to prohibit the
state from conducting a lottery either di-
rectly or indirectly. In recent remarks I
have had the impression that the Commit-
tee's desired prohibition is that no private
citizen in Maryland could conduct anything
which might be called a lottery.

DELEGATE SHERBOW: Delegate Bur-
dette, let me take it from the beginning.
The word sanction, as used in this particu-
lar recommendation, is used in the sense
of authorize. This is the basis that we
adopted. A change to authorize would not
be objectionable.

Under the circumstances we felt that the
word "sanction" was preferable as being
the stronger of the two terms. The word
we used was "sanction, " but the meaning
is in the sense of being authorized.

The second part you asked is whether or
not this would mean that the state could
not authorize or sanction a lottery but
some individual could go out and do it. The
answer is no, the State cannot, the local
subdivisions cannot, and that which is a
lottery would be prohibited.

THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Burdette.

DELEGATE BURDETTE: The Com-
mittee then is using the language "sanc-
tion" as if it were to say the State of
Maryland and its political subdivisions

shall not allow a lottery to be conducted
in this State.

DELEGATE SHERBOW: Or shall not
authorize a lottery to be conducted in this
State.

THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Burdette.

DELEGATE BURDETTE: Perhaps that
might be an entirely different matter. If
the General Assembly should take no action
whatever, would the Chairman of the Com-
mittee think that the General Assembly is
by that inaction authorizing private citi-
zens to conduct a lottery?

DELEGATE SHERBOW: If we take
this ban out and the legislature does noth-
ing, I say yes, that would mean that some
little town of a thousand inhabitants could
proceed with its lottery. Some town with
10, 000 inhabitants could proceed with its.
The county could. On and on and on.

THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Burdette.

DELEGATE BURDETTE: I was not
speaking to the point of taking the ban out.
I was speaking to the point of putting the
ban in. And even with the ban in, as I
understand your remarks, frankly, I do
not understand this point, with the ban in
and if the legislature took no action to
authorize, would the effect upon private
citizens be that private lotteries are banned
or not banned?

DELEGATE SHERBOW: Professor, I
do not understand your question because,
if the ban is in, the legislature cannot take
any action allowing a lottery.

THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Sherbow,
maybe the Chair can state Delegate Bur-
dette's question because I do not believe
you are answering his specific question. Let
me do so with two illustrations.

If the ban is in the constitution as pro-
posed by the Committee, and the legisla-
ture were to amend the statute prohibiting
gambling so as to make it clear that the
statutes did not prohibit a lottery, would
this constitutional provision nevertheless
prohibit a lottery?

DELEGATE SHERBOW: The constitu-
tional prohibition would prohibit a lottery.
The legislature by its definition would have
to determine that what it was passing on
was not a lottery. If it is a lottery the
legislature cannot say we are going to give
permission to have a lottery when the con-
stitution says you cannot.

THE CHAIRMAN: This is the whole
point of the questions of Delegate Scanlan,



 

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Proceedings and Debates of the 1967 Constitutional Convention
Volume 104, Volume 1, Debates 1688   View pdf image (33K)
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