US District Judge John A. Ross may have finally brought some relief in a high-profile case that has had business owners, gambling machine manufacturers, and lawmakers on edge for years now.
Judge Ross has ruled that gambling machines such as the ones distributed by Torch Electronics are indeed “gambling devices,” and not “games of skill,” which effectively means that they must be regulated under Missouri gambling laws.
Torch Electronics on the Ropes in Missouri, as Judge Paves Way to Anti-Gambling Machines Enforcement
To clarify, an ongoing debate raged over whether venues that aren’t casinos could host these machines. It is an existential question not just for Torch Electronics but also for many small businesses that argue that these machines bring in a fair amount of their revenue.
Under Judge Ross’s ruling, however, they would not be allowed to continue providing what was previously argued to be “games of skill” when, in reality, the state is now closer to considering them “games of chance” instead.
Regulators would now have a firmer hand in enforcing Missouri’s gambling laws and going after venues that offer the machines. The case has been litigated since 2019, when TNT Amusements, a company that distributes coin-operated arcade games, went after Torch Electronics.
The company alleged that Torch Electronics had convinced the state to supplant TNT Amusements’ arcades for these new gambling machines, which were effectively a form of illegal gambling.
The case was moved to federal court in 2023 and secured an “early win” in 2025, when a jury found that claims about the absence of chance in Torch Electronics’ games did not correspond to the reality of what these games were.
That September win, though, was an important change in how the case was framed. TNT Amusements did receive $500,000 in damages, but the company also managed to convince the court to also now look into whether Torch Electronics’ machines were indeed subject to regulation under Missouri gambling law, as Judge Ross has now decided.
Judge Ross Sides with Plaintiff, But Stops Short of Calling Machines “Slots”
Judge Ross has indeed argued that the presented evidence suggested that there were “multiple elements of chance” built into the games. Judge Ross also cited a ruling from the state of Tennessee from July 2025, when a local court also said that it is not accurate for the company to insist on the lack of chance in its games, when it was clearly there.
One important distinction Judge Ross made, however, was that he would not qualify the gambling machines offered by Torch Electronics as “slot machines,” as he felt that it was not for him to decide this.
With Missouri stepping up enforcement efforts against the sector, Judge Ross’s ruling will provide clarity in enforcing the matter.
