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See below
§ 18.2-334. Exception to
article; private residences.
§ 11-14. Gaming contracts
void.
Except
as otherwise provided in
this section, all wagers,
conveyances, assurances, and
all contracts and securities
whereof the whole or any
part of the consideration is
money or other valuable
thing won, laid, or bet, at
any game, horse race, sport
or pastime, and all
contracts to repay any money
knowingly lent at the time
and place of such game,
race, sport or pastime, to
any person for the purpose
of so gaming, betting, or
wagering, or to repay any
money so lent to any person
who shall, at such time and
place, so pay, bet or wager,
shall be utterly void.
Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, a contract
governing the distribution
of state lottery proceeds
shall be valid and
enforceable as between the
parties to the contract.
§ 11-15. Recovery of money
or property lost in gaming.
Any
person who shall, by playing
at any game or betting on
the sides or hands of such
as play at any game, lose
within twenty-four hours,
the sum or value of five
dollars, or more, and pay or
deliver the same, or any
part thereof, may, within
three months next following,
recover from the winner, the
money or the value of the
goods so lost and paid or
delivered, with costs of
suit in civil action, either
by suit or warrant,
according to the amount or
value thereof.
§ 11-16. Bill by loser;
repayment discharges winner
from punishment.
Such
loser may file a bill in
equity against such winner,
who shall answer the same,
and upon discovery and
repayment of the money or
property so won, or its
value, such winner shall be
discharged from any
forfeiture or punishment
which he may have incurred
for winning the same.
§
18.2-325. Definitions.
1. "Illegal
gambling" means the
making, placing or receipt,
of any bet or wager in this
Commonwealth of money or
other thing of value, made
in exchange for a chance to
win a prize, stake or other
consideration or thing of
value, dependent upon the
result of any game, contest
or any other event the
outcome of which is
uncertain or a matter of
chance, whether such game,
contest or event, occurs or
is to occur inside or
outside the limits of this
Commonwealth.
2.
"Interstate
gambling" means the
conduct of an enterprise for
profit which engages in the
purchase or sale within the
Commonwealth of any interest
in a lottery of another
state or country whether or
not such interest is an
actual lottery ticket,
receipt, contingent promise
to pay, order to purchase,
or other record of such
interest.
3.
"Gambling
device" includes:
a. Any device, machine,
paraphernalia, equipment, or
other thing, including
books, records and other
papers, which are actually
used in an illegal gambling
operation or activity, and
b. Any machine, apparatus,
implement, instrument,
contrivance, board or other
thing, including but not
limited to those dependent
upon the insertion of a coin
or other object for their
operation, which operates,
either completely
automatically or with the
aid of some physical act by
the player or operator, in
such a manner that,
depending upon elements of
chance, it may eject
something of value or
determine the prize or other
thing of value to which the
player is entitled;
provided, however, that the
return to the user of
nothing more than additional
chances or the right to use
such machine is not deemed
something of value within
the meaning of this
subsection; and provided
further, that machines that
only sell, or entitle the
user to, items of
merchandise of equivalent
value that may differ from
each other in composition,
size, shape or color, shall
not be deemed gambling
devices within the meaning
of this subsection.
Such devices are no less
gambling devices if they
indicate beforehand the
definite result of one or
more operations but not all
the operations. Nor are they
any less a gambling device
because, apart from their
use or adaptability as such,
they may also sell or
deliver something of value
on a basis other than
chance.
4.
"Operator"
includes any person, firm or
association of persons, who
conducts, finances, manages,
supervises, directs or owns
all or part of an illegal
gambling enterprise,
activity or operation.
§
18.2-326. Penalty for
illegal gambling.
Except
as otherwise provided in
this article, any person who
illegally gambles or engages
in interstate gambling as
defined in §18.2-325 shall
be guilty of a Class 3
misdemeanor. If an
association or pool of
persons illegally gamble,
each person therein shall be
guilty of illegal gambling.
§
18.2-327. Winning by fraud;
penalty.
If any
person while gambling cheats
or by fraudulent means wins
or acquires for himself or
another money or any other
valuable thing, he shall be
fined not less than five nor
more than ten times the
value of such winnings. This
penalty shall be in addition
to any other penalty imposed
under this article.
§
18.2-328. Conducting illegal
gambling operation;
penalties.
The
operator of an illegal
gambling enterprise,
activity or operation shall
be guilty of a Class 6
felony. However, any such
operator who engages in an
illegal gambling operation
which (i) has been or
remains in substantially
continuous operation for a
period in excess of thirty
days or (ii) has gross
revenue of $2,000 or more in
any single day shall be
fined not more than $20,000
and imprisoned not less than
one year nor more than ten
years.
As used in this section, the
term "gross revenue" means
the total amount of illegal
gambling transactions
handled, dealt with,
received by or placed with
such operation, as
distinguished from any net
figure or amount from which
deductions are taken,
without regard to whether
money or any other thing of
value actually changes
hands.
§
18.2-329. Owners, etc., of
gambling place permitting
its continuance; penalty.
If the
owner, lessee, tenant,
occupant or other person in
control of any place or
conveyance, knows, or
reasonably should know, that
it is being used for illegal
gambling, and permits such
gambling to continue without
having notified a
law-enforcement officer of
the presence of such illegal
gambling activity, he shall
be guilty of a Class 1
misdemeanor.
§
18.2-330. Accessories to
gambling activity; penalty.
Any
person, firm or association
of persons, other than those
persons specified in other
sections of this article,
who knowingly aids, abets or
assists in the operation of
an illegal gambling
enterprise, activity or
operation, shall be guilty
of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
§
18.2-331. Illegal
possession, etc., of
gambling device; penalty.
A
person is guilty of illegal
possession of a gambling
device when he manufactures,
sells, transports, rents,
gives away, places or
possesses, or conducts or
negotiates any transaction
affecting or designed to
affect ownership, custody or
use of any gambling device,
believing or having reason
to believe that the same is
to be used in the
advancement of unlawful
gambling activity. Violation
of any provision of this
section shall constitute a
Class 1 misdemeanor.
§
18.2-332. Certain acts not
deemed "consideration" in
prosecution under this
article.
In any
prosecution under this
article, no consideration
shall be deemed to have
passed or been given because
of any person's attendance
upon the premises of
another; his execution,
mailing or delivery of an
entry blank; his answering
of questions, verbally or in
writing; his witnessing of a
demonstration or other
proceeding; or any one or
more thereof, where no
charge is made to, paid by,
or any purchase required of
him in connection therewith.
§
18.2-333. Exceptions to
article; certain sporting
events.
Nothing in this article
shall be construed to
prevent any contest of speed
or skill between men,
animals, fowl or vehicles,
where participants may
receive prizes or different
percentages of a purse,
stake or premium dependent
upon whether they win or
lose or dependent upon their
position or score at the end
of such contest.
Any
participant who, for the
purpose of competing for any
such purse, stake or premium
offered in any such contest,
knowingly and fraudulently
enters any contestant other
than the contestant
purported to be entered or
knowingly and fraudulently
enters a contestant in a
class in which it does not
belong, shall be guilty of a
Class 3 misdemeanor.
§ 18.2-334. Exception to
article; private residences.
Nothing in this article
shall be construed to make
it illegal to participate in
a game of chance conducted
in a private residence,
provided such private
residence is not commonly
used for such games of
chance and there is no
operator as defined in
subsection 4 of § 18.2-325.
§
18.2-334.2. Same; bingo
games, raffles and duck
races conducted by certain
organizations.
Nothing in this article
shall apply to any bingo
game, instant bingo, raffle,
or duck race conducted
solely by organizations as
defined in § 18.2-340.16
which have received a permit
as set forth in §
18.2-340.25, or which are
exempt from the permit
requirement under §
18.2-340.23.
§
18.2-334.3. Exemptions to
article; state lottery.
Nothing in this article
shall apply to any lottery
conducted by the
Commonwealth of Virginia
pursuant to Chapter 40 of
Title 58.1.
§
18.2-334.4. Exemptions to
article; pari-mutuel
wagering.
Nothing in this article
shall be construed to make
it illegal to participate in
any race meeting or
pari-mutuel wagering
conducted in accordance with
Chapter 29 (§ 59.1-364 et
seq.) of Title 59.1.
§
18.2-336. Forfeiture of
money, gambling devices,
etc., seized from illegal
gambling enterprise;
innocent owners or lienors.
All
money, gambling devices,
office equipment and other
personal property used in
connection with an illegal
gambling enterprise or
activity, and all money,
stakes and things of value
received or proposed to be
received by a winner in any
illegal gambling
transaction, which are
lawfully seized by any
law-enforcement officer or
which shall lawfully come
into his custody, shall be
forfeited to the
Commonwealth by order of the
court in which a conviction
under this article is
obtained. Such court shall
order all money so forfeited
to be paid over to the
Commonwealth, and by order
shall make such disposition
of other property so
forfeited as the court deems
proper, including award of
such property to any State
agency or charitable
organization for lawful
purposes, or in case of the
sale thereof, the proceeds
therefrom to be paid over to
the Commonwealth. Provided,
however, that such
forfeiture shall not
extinguish the rights of any
person without knowledge of
the illegal use of such
property who is the lawful
owner or who has a lien on
the same which has been
perfected in the manner
provided by law.
§
18.2-337. Immunity of
witnesses from prosecution.
No
witness called by the
Commonwealth or by the
court, giving evidence
either before the grand jury
or in any prosecution under
this article, shall ever be
prosecuted for the offense
being prosecuted concerning
which he testifies. Such
witness shall be compelled
to testify and for refusing
to do so may be punished for
contempt.
§
18.2-338. Enforcement of §
18.2-331 by Governor and
Attorney General.
If it
shall come to the knowledge
of the Governor that §
18.2-331 is not being
enforced in any county, city
or town, the Governor may
call upon the Attorney
General to direct its
enforcement in such county,
city or town, and thereupon
the Attorney General may
instruct the attorney for
the Commonwealth, sheriff
and chief of police, if any,
of such county, or the
attorney for the
Commonwealth and chief of
police of such city, or the
attorney for the
Commonwealth of the county
in which such town is
located and the chief of
police or sergeant of such
town, to take such steps as
may be necessary to insure
the enforcement of such
section in such county, city
or town, and if any such
officers, after receiving
such instructions, shall
thereafter fail or refuse to
exercise diligence in the
enforcement of § 18.2-331,
the Attorney General shall
make report thereof in
writing to the Governor and
to the judge of the circuit
court having jurisdiction
over the acts thereby
prohibited, and thereupon
the Attorney General upon
being directed so to do by
the Governor, shall take
such steps as he may deem
proper in directing the
institution and prosecution
of criminal proceedings, to
secure the enforcement of §
18.2-331.
§
18.2-339. Enjoining offenses
relating to gambling.
Whenever any person shall be
engaged in committing, or in
permitting to be committed,
or shall be about to commit,
or permit, any act
prohibited by any one or
more of the sections in this
article, the attorney for
the Commonwealth of the
county or city in which such
act is being, or is about to
be, committed or permitted,
or the Attorney General of
the Commonwealth, may
institute and maintain a
suit in equity in the
appropriate court, in the
name of the Commonwealth,
upon the relation of such
attorney for the
Commonwealth, or the
Attorney General, to enjoin
and restrain such person
from committing, or
permitting, such prohibited
act or acts. The procedure
in any such suit shall be
similar to the procedure in
other suits for injunctions,
except that no bond shall be
required upon the granting
of either a temporary or
permanent injunction
therein.
§
18.2-340. County ordinances
prohibiting illegal
gambling.
The
governing body of any county
may adopt ordinances
prohibiting illegal gambling
and other illegal activity
related thereto, including
provision for forfeiture
proceedings in the name of
the county. Such ordinances
shall not conflict with the
provisions of this article
or with other state laws and
any penalties provided for
violation of such ordinances
shall not exceed a fine of
$2,500 or confinement in
jail for twelve months,
either or both. |
