Chapter 9.30
GAMBLING
Sections:
9.30.010 Illegal card and dice games.
9.30.020 Illegal games of chance.
9.30.030 Participation in illegal games.
9.30.040 Betting on illegal games.
9.30.050 Permitting illegal games.
9.30.060 Exception for authorized bingo games.
9.30.070 Gambling devices declared nuisance.
9.30.080 Destruction of gambling devices.
9.30.090 Draw Poker – Receiving payment for playing or operating game.
9.30.100 Draw Poker – Paving for privilege of participating in game.
9.30.110 Draw poker – Betting property belonging to another.
9.30.120 Draw poker – Permitting premises to be used for violations.
9.30.130 Illegal gambling – Seizure of furniture and equipment.
9.30.140 Illegal gambling – Frequenting premises.
9.30.150 Bookmaking – Use of telephone or telegraph facilities.
9.30.170 Possession of book or device for recording bets and wagers.
9.30.180 Gambling at dice or pool.
9.30.010 Illegal card and dice games.
Every person, firm, corporation or association who, for profit, or for anything of value or for commercial purposes of any nature, keeps, operates, conducts or maintains, either directly or indirectly, within the city, any house, room, apartment, dwelling place, building, premises, or other place where any game, gambling or gaming not mentioned or included in Section 330 or 330a of the Penal Code is played, conducted, dealt, or carried on whether with cards, dice, or any other device of whatsoever nature, for money, checks, credit, merchandise, or other representative of value, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
Every person, firm, corporation or association, either as owner, lessor, lessee, principal, agent, employee or participant or otherwise, who maintains or keeps or operates or conducts directly or indirectly in whole or in part, or who directly or indirectly is in possession in whole or in part of any premises, or other place upon or in which any gambling, games or gaming prohibited in this section are played, conducted, dealt or carried on, and who imposes or collects a fee or anything of value for the privilege of participating in any way whatsoever in any such games, gambling or gaming, or who directly or indirectly gains or receives anything of value or any financial profit from playing, conducting or dealing of any such games, gambling or gaming shall, for the purposes of this chapter, be deemed to be keeping, conducting, operating and maintaining the same for profit or commercial purposes. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.020 Illegal games of chance.
It is unlawful within the city for any person, firm, corporation or association, either as owner, lessee, manager, employee, agent or servant, to conduct, manage, carry on, maintain, operate, open, deal or deal in, or to cause or permit to be conducted, managed, carried on, maintained, operated, opened, dealt or dealt in, any game, operation or transaction wherein any prize, gift rebate, compensation, reward, award, payment or gratuity, consisting of any money, check, token, credit, goods, wares, merchandise, property or thing of value, is or is to be given, awarded or delivered, either directly or indirectly, and wherein chance is a determining factor or is any determining factor of the result of such game, operation or transaction, which game, operation or transaction is conducted, carried out, maintained, operated or played by the throwing, tossing, dropping, depositing or placing of any ball, marker, object, thing or substance into any perforation, hole or indentation, in or upon any surface, receptacle, container, object or thing having marked, designated or identified thereon by or with any figure, number, character, symbol, letter, design or mark of any kind, or by the selecting, designating, turning, indicating, choosing or projecting of any such figure, number, character, symbol, letter, design or mark by means of any device, apparatus or equipment, or by any means or in any manner or by the drawing, selecting, choosing or removing from any receptacle or container of any ball, disk, object, substance or material marked, designated or identified by or with any figure, number, character, symbol, letter, design or mark hereinabove referred to corresponding to, duplicating, referring to or relating to, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, any figure, number, character, symbol, letter, design or mark upon any card, paper, board, fabric, surfaces object, substance or thing held, used, operated or maintained by any player or participant therein or by any person, where, by any predetermined or prearranged, or by any rule, method, scheme, design or procedure, any person is found, declared or determined to be, or is or is to be, the winner, donee, recipient or taker of such prize, gift, rebate, compensation, reward, award, payment or gratuity, in the event that any such player or participant pays, deposits, expends, gives or pledges, either directly or indirectly, or agrees, promises or intends to pay, deposit, expend, give or pledge, either directly or indirectly, any money check, credit, property or thing of value, or makes or agrees to make any purchase for the privilege of playing or participating therein or of gaining admission to the place or premises where such game, operation or transaction is or is to be played, conducted, carried on, maintained or operated, or to any other place or premises; provided, made unlawful by the provisions of Section 320, or of Section 320a, or of Section 330 of the Penal Code, or any other code section or general law of the state, it being the intent of the city council to prohibit by this section all games, operations or transactions described in this section, or transactions for profit, commonly known as keno, tango, movie tango, beano, skill ball, fortune, quintan, fascination or inspiration, and all games, operations or transactions similar thereto under whatever name they may be designated. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.030 Participation in illegal games.
It is unlawful within the city for any person to participate in, play, play in or engage in, either directly or indirectly, any game, operation or transaction prohibited by the provisions of this chapter. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.040 Betting on illegal games.
Every person who places or bets at or against any of the games, gambling or gaming which by this chapter are made unlawful shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.050 Permitting illegal games.
It is unlawful for any person, firm, corporation or association, owning, leasing, managing, controlling or having any interest in any property or premises lying within the city to cause or permit the maintenance or operation in or on such property or premises, having knowledge, or after reasonable notice of the existence thereof, of any game, operation or transaction declared by the provisions of this chapter to be unlawful. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.060 Exception for authorized bingo games.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall be deemed to prohibit the participation in, play, conduct, carrying on or operation of any bingo game authorized pursuant to the provisions of this code. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.070 Gambling devices declared nuisance.
Any machine, contrivance, appliance, device, game ticket, chance, share, interest, instrument or article operated, used, kept, possessed, placed or maintained in violation of the provisions of:
A. Section 330a of the Penal Code of the state; or
B. Any section enumerated in Part 1, Title 9, Chapter 9 of the Penal Code of the state of California; or
C. The provisions of this chapter; is declared to be a nuisance and shall be subject to abatement as provided in Chapter 8.10 of this code. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
(Ord. 1739, Amended, 09/06/2005)
9.30.080 Destruction of gambling devices.
A. Any article declared by this code to be a nuisance as a result of the operation, use, keeping, possession, playing or maintaining of which any person has been convicted of, or has pleaded guilty to, any violation of any law of this state, or any of the provisions of this code, or any ordinance of the city, shall be destroyed by the chief of police after such plea or after judgment of conviction becomes final. Such article and the contents thereof shall be destroyed; provided, however, that any money so declared to be a nuisance shall be deposited in the general fund of the city.
B. If any article subject to destruction, as herein provided, is in the custody of any court within the city, the chief of police shall cause an application to be made to such court for an order releasing such article to him for the purpose of complying with this section. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.090 Draw Poker – Receiving payment for playing or operating game.
It is unlawful for any person to receive directly or indirectly anything of value from the playing or operation of a game of draw poker or any variation thereof, other than the actual winnings to which a person playing such game in good faith for himself alone may be entitled as a result of such game. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.100 Draw Poker – Paving for privilege of participating in game.
It is unlawful for any person to give anything of value for being permitted to participate in a game of draw poker or any variation thereof, other than to pay the actual losses sustained by such person playing such game in good faith for himself alone. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.110 Draw poker – Betting property belonging to another.
It is unlawful for any person to bet or wager anything of value belonging to another person in a game of draw poker or any variation thereof. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.120 Draw poker – Permitting premises to be used for violations.
It is unlawful for any person, either as owner, lessee, agent, employee, mortgagor or otherwise, to knowingly permit any room, building or premises, or any furniture, fixtures, equipment or other article, or anything of value, to be used for or in any game of draw poker or any variation thereof, in connection with which a violation of this code occurs. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.130 Illegal gambling – Seizure of furniture and equipment.
In addition to any other remedy provided by law, any furniture, fixtures, equipment or article, or anything of value, used in violation of any provision of this chapter, may be seized by any of the officers designated by Section 335 and 335a of the Penal Code of the state of California and, in such cases, shall be disposed of in the same manner as provided in Section 335a of said Penal Code; provided, however, that the phrase “machine or device” as used in Section 335a of the Penal Code, shall mean any furniture, fixtures, equipment or article, or anything of value, except money, coin or currency. Any or all money, coin or currency used in violation of any provision of this chapter and seized pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the general fund of the city. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.140 Illegal gambling – Frequenting premises.
No person shall visit, frequent or be present at or within any house, room, apartment, office or place used in whole or in part as a place where any game or device is played, operated, conducted, dealt or carried on with cards, dice, billiard balls, pool balls or other devices for money, checks, chips, credit or any other representative of value or for any merchandise or any other thing of value, prohibited by Section 330 or 330a of the Penal Code of the state of California. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.150 Bookmaking – Use of telephone or telegraph facilities.
No person shall let or lease any telegraph or telephone line or wire knowing that it is to be used for the purpose of conducting or carrying on a betting pool, or for the purpose of conducting the business of making book or selling pools on races or other contests, or of betting or laying wagers upon the result of any race or contest. No person shall transmit any message over any telephone or telegraph line or wire knowing that such message is to be used in connection with conducting or carrying on a betting pool or making book or selling pools on races or other contests or of betting or laying of wagers upon the result of any race or contest. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.160 Tip sheets.
No person engaged in conducting or carrying on a betting pool or in the business of making book or selling pools or races, or the betting or laying of wagers upon the results of any race or contest, shall have in his possession any written or printed form, chart, table, list sheet, circular or publication of any kind giving or purporting to give any list of entries for any horse race or other contest thereafter anywhere to take place, if there is written or printed or published as part thereof, any tip, information, prediction or selection of, or advise as to, or any key, cipher or cryptogram indicating, containing or giving any tip, information, publication or selection of, or advice as to the winner or probable winner, or a loser or probable loser, or the result or probable result of any such race or other contest or the standing or probable standing of any horse or contestant therein or any statement as to, or comment upon, or reference to, the form, condition or standing of any horse or other contestant, or the actual, probable or possible state, past, present, or future of the betting, wagering or odds upon or against any horse or other contestant named in such list, or probable or possible list, or entries unless the names of such horses or other contestants shall be arranged in such list, or probable or possible list, in alphabetical order, and shall all be printed in type of the same size and face and of identical appearance, and shall all be printed flush with the left side of the column in which the same are printed, or an equal distance therefrom. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.170 Possession of book or device for recording bets and wagers.
No person shall have in his possession any book, paper, apparatus, device or paraphernalia for the purpose of recording or registering any bet or any purported bet or wager, or any purported wager, upon the result, or purported result, of any trial, or purported trial, or contest or purported contest, of skill, speed, power or endurance of man or beast or between men, beasts or mechanical apparatus, or upon the result or purported result of any lot, chance, casualty or contingent event whatsoever. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.180 Gambling at dice or pool.
Every person who deals, plays or carries on, opens or causes to be opened, or who conducts either as owner or employee, whether for hire or not, any game of dice having six faces or less, or any game played with small round balls usually having one flat face and commonly referred to as “pool peas,” or any games using pool balls for the purpose of engaging in billiards, snooker, pool or a similar game, when the aforementioned games are played for money, checks, credit or other representative of value, and every person who bets at or against any of the aforementioned and prohibited games, is guilty of a misdemeanor. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).
9.30.190 Validity.
If any section, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this chapter is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, as applied to any person or persons, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter. The city council declares that it would have passed this chapter, and each section, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared unconstitutional or invalid. (Ord. 1182 §1(part), 1983).