Sixty Plaintiffs in Mike Postle Poker Cheating Case Accept Settlement, Will Others Pursue Legal Action?

Posted on: September 11, 2020, 08:03h. 

Last updated on: September 15, 2020, 12:35h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.

Sixty plaintiffs in the Mike Postle alleged cheating case have accepted a settlement, according to new court filings this week. That allows for the possibility that 28 remaining poker players may still choose to pursue the case through the courts.

Mike Postle
Analysis of Mike Postle’s poker hands during Stones Live Poker revealed a quality of play that was “multiple degrees higher than that achieved by the best poker players in the world.” (Image: Cardplayer)

The value of the settlements was not publicly disclosed. But they didn’t come from Postle, the player who, according to the lawsuit, was relayed information about opponents’ hole cards by an accomplice during a series of Stone Live Poker cash game streams last year.

Sensationally, a judge in Sacramento dismissed all claims against Postle in June. The judge ruled so on the grounds that disputes were “not cognizable under California law because California public policy bars judicial intervention in gambling disputes, in part because the asserted damages are inherently speculative.”

This ruling also got Stones Gambling Hall and its tournament director Justin Kuraitis partially off the hook. But the judge left the door ajar for the plaintiffs to file an amended complaint against the venue and its employee.

Whistleblower Didn’t Settle

Conspicuous by her absence among the list of players who accepted the payoff is Veronica Brill, occasional player and commentator for Stones Live Poker, who blew the whistle on Postle’s suspicious behavior.

Brill was also suing Stones for libel because the card room called her a liar on its social media account after she accused Postle.

Once Brill’s allegations surfaced, internet sleuths took up the case, poring over hundreds of hours of footage, analyzing hands, and discussing the statistical implausibility of Postle’s extraordinary win-rates, attained while using sub-optimal strategies.

Their conclusion, as the plaintiffs later alleged, was that Postle either received information about hole cards via his cell phone, which he habitually concealed under the poker table, or via a device embedded in his baseball cap, and probably both.

Deadline Day

The plaintiffs originally sought $30 million – $10 million from each party – claiming racketeering, fraud, negligence, and unjust enrichment. This week’s settlements are likely to be just a fraction of that.

Postle is alleged to have won around $250,000 playing the largely low-stakes games at Stones.

Should Brill and the remaining plaintiffs choose to continue to pursue legal action, the deadline to file an amended complaint is today, September 11.