The Lodge Card Club civil forfeiture case took a sharp turn in April. Williamson County filed a claim to keep more than $2 million in seized assets, but dropped every felony allegation from the original raid.
The April 8 filing in the 480th Judicial District Court rested entirely on alleged illegal gambling, a Class A misdemeanour.
The money laundering and organised criminal activity allegations were abandoned, and no criminal charges were filed against anyone.
The filing landed one day before the 30-day statutory deadline under Texas law. Had the state missed the April 9 cutoff without acting, all seized assets would have been returned automatically.
Instead, co-owner Doug Polk and his Lodge ownership group faced the prospect of months or years of civil litigation to recover the money.
This was the seventh development in a story VIP-Grinders tracked from the March 10 TABC raid to the April 9 deadline.
Update (September 28, 2026): On April 28, a Williamson County grand jury declined to indict anyone, and PokerNews and poker.org report that the seized and frozen assets were then released. The Lodge reopened on May 26. See how the case ended.
What Changed on April 8
The state's nine-page forfeiture petition targets the seized property directly (an in rem proceeding) rather than naming individuals as defendants. This is standard for Texas civil forfeiture under Chapter 59 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
- Filing date: April 8, 2026, one day before the 30-day statutory deadline under Chapter 59 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.
- Court: 480th Judicial District Court, Williamson County. This is a civil proceeding filed against the property itself (in rem), not against individuals.
- Seized assets: approximately $1.35 million in cash (including a $435,000 IRS refund cheque), roughly $721,000 frozen from Tempus Holding Inc. bank accounts, plus computers and physical evidence.
- Charges dropped: all felony allegations (money laundering and organised criminal activity) have been removed. The filing rests solely on alleged illegal gambling, a Class A misdemeanour.
- Response deadline: The Lodge's legal team has 20 days from service to file a Verified Answer contesting the forfeiture. Failure to respond triggers an automatic default judgment.
The seized cash breaks down into roughly $1.35 million taken from the premises (including a $435,000 IRS refund cheque found during the raid) and approximately $721,000 frozen from Tempus Holding Inc. bank accounts. All accounts associated with The Lodge's operating entity remained frozen until after the grand jury decision.
Why the Legal Downgrade Changes Everything
The original March 10 search warrant alleged five separate violations: engaging in organised criminal activity (Texas Penal Code §71.02(a)), money laundering, promotion of gambling, keeping a gambling place, and possession of a gambling device. All felony-level allegations are now gone.
This was the detail most coverage buried. Headlines focused on “no criminal charges” as if that was a win. The real story was the state dropping its strongest legal theories while still trying to keep the money through civil forfeiture.
The money laundering theory was always derivative rather than independent. As Polk explained in his March 31 YouTube statement, if the state classifies poker at The Lodge as illegal, then every associated financial transaction becomes “money laundering” by definition. The state apparently concluded it could not sustain that logic.
What is the §47.02(b) defence? Texas Penal Code shields gambling in a “private place” where “no person received any economic benefit other than personal winnings.” The Lodge charged hourly seat fees instead of raking pots, the same model used by 60 to 80 other Texas poker rooms.
Proving illegal gambling against The Lodge would have required overcoming that statutory defence. TABC undercover agents played $1/$2 no-limit hold'em at The Lodge between April 2025 and January 2026.
On at least one visit, agents gained entry without being asked for membership proof. Other agents were required to purchase memberships. That factual dispute was expected to be central to the civil case.
Polk's Seven-Figure Pledge and the Status of Player Funds
Polk broke his public silence on March 31 with a 22-minute YouTube video containing his most direct statement since the raid. His core pledge: if The Lodge cannot make players whole, he will personally cover the liabilities. He characterised this as a voluntary personal commitment.
The outstanding liabilities included cash game chip balances, tournament payouts, and pending wire transfers. The largest single obligation was the $204,145 first-place prize won by Wayne Harmon in the Lodge Championship Series Main Event, which concluded just 16 hours before the raid.
With all Tempus Holding bank accounts frozen by the forfeiture action, no disbursements could happen until the civil case resolved or the court released the funds. The assets were released after the April 28 grand jury decision.
Brad Owen issued a brief defence of Polk on X shortly after the raid. Fellow co-owner and vlogger Andrew Neeme had posted on X on March 19 about the staff left without work. Other minority investors, including Nik Airball and poker vlogger Ethan “Rampage” Yau, had said nothing publicly at the time.
What This Means for Texas Poker
The Lodge is not an isolated operation. As of late 2024, 68 active private poker clubs operated across Texas under the same seat-fee model, with roughly 876 tables between them.
Houston alone hosts 18 clubs. All rely on the §47.02(b) defence.
As of early April, no other Texas poker rooms had been raided since March 10, and most continued operating, including Texas Card House's six locations. The Lodge may have been uniquely vulnerable because its TABC mixed beverage permit gave the Financial Crimes Unit jurisdiction that it would not have over a dry club.
On the legislative front, nothing is moving. Two competing poker bills introduced in the 2025 Texas session both died without advancing. The legislature only meets every two years in odd-numbered years, so the next session doesn't start until January 2027.
San Antonio: The Lodge's San Antonio location continued operating normally. It is structured under a separate legal entity and was not targeted in the Williamson County raid. The closure applied only to the Round Rock facility, which reopened on May 26.
What Happened Next
At the time of the filing, the Lodge had been closed since March 10 and its staff had been laid off. Co-owner Jason Levin had told employees the Williamson County DA considered the business model non-compliant with Texas law, and that reopening would risk another raid and potential arrests.
- April 28: a Williamson County grand jury declined to indict anyone.
- Assets: PokerNews and poker.org report that the seized and frozen assets were released after the grand jury decision.
- May 26: the Lodge reopened in Round Rock, 11 weeks after the raid.
- July 3: Polk said he would remain a shareholder but no longer have any active role at the Lodge.
- Legislative timeline: the Texas Legislature meets only in odd-numbered years. The next session starts in January 2027.
At the time, the complete absence of criminal charges 33 days after seizure, combined with the abandoned felony theories, gave The Lodge genuine leverage. The grand jury's decision 20 days after the filing bore that out.
Earlier reports in the series cover the March 10 raid, Polk's March 16 statement, the search warrant details, the asset freeze and the closure and staff layoffs.
For Texas-based players who also want online action, ACR Poker and CoinPoker both accept US players. Our ACR Poker review and CoinPoker review cover the current deals.
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