Milton McGregor maintained hundreds of jobs for Macon County residents by keeping VictoryLand open.
VictoryLand founder Milton McGregor died Sunday at the age of 78 at his home. The controversial racetrack and casino owner had been a notable figure in Alabama politics for 3 decades.
Bill Cunningham, a spokesman for VictoryLand, said that Milton McGregor died “peacefully at home” on Sunday. Cunningham did not disclose the cause of death.
Milton McGregor owned the VictoryLand racetrack in Macon County, which brought jobs to a region which sorely needed them. As the dog racing industry declined in the 21st Century, McGregor’s efforts to bolster his dog track with new forms of gambling made him a controversial figure.
Milton McGregor and the Bingo Wars
VictoryLand was a key battleground in the Bingo Wars of 2008-2010, when gaming venues in the state tried to operate bingo halls. The governor of Alabama at the time, Bob Riley, tried to shut down not only the bingo halls, but all gambling the state. The Bingo Wars involved political battles inside the Alabama State Legislature and inside Alabama courtrooms.
During the height of the crisis, McGregor had to shut down VictoryLand. He also had to defend himself in court, because the VictoryLand owner was accused of trying to bribe legislators to pass pro-bingo gambling legislation.
Milton McGregor on Trial
Alabama politics is a zero sum game, where several governors have gone to prison when their term came to an end. In those battles, Milton McGregor’s entire life was put on public display — at least according to the VictoryLand owner himself.
In a 2014 interview, McGregor told The Advertiser, “They examined me closer than any person in this country has been examined, and they found nothing — because I’m clean. Make sure you put that in there, because by God, they put me and my family through hell. They listened to my wife reading my grandbabies Bible stories.”
2013 Slot Machine Raids
McGregor was acquitted in the case, but that was not the end of his legal battles with Alabama’s administration. When VictoryLand, Greene Charity in Eutaw, Frontier Bingo and River’s Edge in Knoxville, Southern Star Casino in Lowndes Count, and Center Stage (Country Crossing) installed racino-style slot machines in 2013, then-Attorney General Luther Strange raided the complexex. In VictoryLand’s case, Alabama state troopers seized over a thousand gaming machines and several hundred thousand dollars of cash.
Once again, the slot machine raids led to litigation. Once again, Milton McGregor was successful in the court battles. In Luther Strange, though, McGregor found an opponent made of sterner stuff.
Judge William Shashy Rules
Though Alabama District Court Judge William Shashy ruled that VictoryLand’s gaming machines were legal and ordered Luther Strange to return the gaming machines and cash confiscated in the VictoryLand raid within 90 days, Luther Strange simply ignored the legal decision. When Gov. Robert Bentley called on his AG to follow the court order — as well as stop using limited resources to harass gaming operators — Luther Strange ignored his boss’s orders.
Judge Shashy wrote in his opinion, “It is apparent at the present time that the State of Alabama is cherrypicking which facilities should remain open or closed. This Court refuses to be used an instrument to perpetuate unfair treatment.”
Eventually, Gov. Bentley stripped Luther Strange of his ability to send state troopers on gambling raids. Milton McGregor added 500 new Class II slots — electronic bingo slot machines — to VictoryLand in September 2016. McGregor said he did not expect there would be another gambling raid.
Bentley and Strange: A Political Deal
By that time, Robert Bentley and Luther Strange had other things on their mind. Bentley was under an ethics probe over an affair he had with an adviser, while Strange was leading the probe. When Bentley appointed Luther Strange to take over Jeff Sessions’ position in the US Senate, many believed the Alabama governor gave his AG the plum position in return for an official exoneration. The rest is history.
Whatever the case, the temporary truce between Milton McGregor and the Alabama state government did not last. In October 2017, new Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall sued VictoryLand in an attempt to remove the bingo-style slot machines.
Milton McGregor on Steve Marshall
When that legal action was announced, Milton McGregor said, “His actions are hurting thousands of Alabama families and potentially costing Alabama important jobs while spending millions of taxpayer dollars.”
“VictoryLand will continue to fight on behalf of its wonderful employees and the people of Macon County and East Alabama.”
That was the way many in Macon County will remember Milton McGregor — a man who preserved the jobs of many residents, even at his own legal jeopardy at times. VictoryLand’s concerns are no longer Milton McGregor’s, but those of his heirs. Whatever one’s thoughts on the Bingo Wars, may Milton McGregor rest in peace.
