§ 42-61.3-2 — § 42-61.3-2. Casino gaming crimes.

Rhode Island § 42-61.3-2

• Jurisdiction: Rhode Island
• Title 42: State Affairs and Government
• Ch. 42-61.3: Casino Gaming

Text

§ 42-61.3-2. Casino gaming crimes.

(a) Definitions as used in this chapter:

(1) "Casino gamingâ€� shall have the meaning set forth in § 42-61.2-1.

(2) "Cheat� means to alter the element of chance, method of selection, or criteria that determines:

(i) The result of the game;

(ii) The amount or frequency of payment in a game, including intentionally taking advantage of a malfunctioning machine;

(iii) The value of a wagering instrument; or

(iv) The value of a wagering credit.

(3) "Cheating device� means any physical, mechanical, electromechanical, electronic, photographic, or computerized device used in such a manner as to cheat, deceive, or defraud a casino game. This includes, but is not limited to:

(i) Plastic, tape, string, or dental floss, or any other item placed inside a coin or bill acceptor or any other opening in a video lottery terminal in a manner to simulate coin or currency acceptance;

(ii) Forged or stolen keys used to gain access to a casino game to remove its contents; and

(iii) Game cards or dice that have been tampered with, marked, or loaded.

(4) "Gaming facilityâ€� means any facility authorized to conduct casino gaming as defined in § 42-61.2-1, including its parking areas and/or adjacent buildings and structures.

(5) "Paraphernalia for the manufacturing of cheating devices� means the equipment, products, or materials that are intended for use in manufacturing, producing, fabricating, preparing, testing, analyzing, packaging, storing, or concealing a counterfeit facsimile of the chips, tokens, debit instruments, or other wagering devices approved by the division of state lottery or lawful coin or currency of the United States of America. This term includes, but is not limited to:

(i) Lead or lead alloy molds, forms, or similar equipment capable of producing a likeness of a gaming token or United States coin or currency;

(ii) Melting pots or other receptacles;

(iii) Torches, tongs, trimming tools, or other similar equipment; and

(iv) Equipment that can be used to manufacture facsimiles of debit instruments or wagering instruments approved by the division of state lottery.

(6) "Table gameâ€� shall have the meaning set forth in § 42-61.2-1.

(7) "Wager� means a sum of money or representative of value that is risked on an occurrence for which the outcome is uncertain.

(b) Prohibited acts and penalties. It shall be unlawful for any person to:

(1) Use, or attempt to use, a cheating device in a casino game or to have possession of such a device in a gaming facility. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(2) Use, acquire, or possess paraphernalia with intent to cheat, or attempt to use, acquire, or possess, paraphernalia with the intent to manufacture cheating devices. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(3) Cheat, or attempt to cheat, in order to take or collect money or anything of value, whether for one's self or another, in or from a casino game in a gaming facility. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(4) Conduct, carry on, operate, deal, or attempt to conduct, carry on, operate, or deal, or allow to be conducted, carried on, operated, or dealt, any cheating game or device. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(5) Manipulate or alter, or attempt to manipulate or alter, with the intent to cheat, any physical, mechanical, electromechanical, electronic, or computerized component of a casino game, contrary to the designed and normal operational purpose for the component. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(6) Use, sell, or possess, or attempt to use, sell, or possess, counterfeit: coins, slugs, tokens, gaming chips, debit instruments, player rewards cards, or any counterfeit wagering instruments and/or devices resembling tokens, gaming chips, debit or other wagering instruments approved by the division of state lottery for use in a casino game in a gaming facility. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(7)(i) Place, increase, decrease, cancel, or remove a wager or determine the course of play of a table game, or attempt to place, increase, decrease, cancel, or remove a wager or determine the course of play of a table game, with knowledge of the outcome of the table game where such knowledge is not available to all players; or

(ii) Aid, or attempt to aid, anyone in acquiring such knowledge for the purpose of placing, increasing, decreasing, cancelling, or removing a wager or determining the course of play of the table game. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(8) Claim, collect, or take, or attempt to claim, collect, or take, money or anything of value in or from a casino game or gaming facility, with intent to defraud or to claim, collect, or take an amount greater than the amount won. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(9) For any employee of a gaming facility or anyone acting on behalf of or at the direction of an employee of a gaming facility, to knowingly fail to collect, or attempt to fail to collect, a losing wager or pay, or attempt to pay, an amount greater on any wager than required under the rules of a casino game. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(10) Directly or indirectly offer, or attempt to offer, to conspire with another, or solicit, or attempt to solicit, from another, anything of value, for the purpose of influencing the outcome of a casino game. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(11) Use or possess, or attempt to use or possess, at a gaming facility, without the written consent of the director of the division of state lottery, any electronic, electrical, or mechanical device designed, constructed, or programmed to assist the user or another person with the intent to:

(i) Predict the outcome of a casino game;

(ii) Keep track of the cards played;

(iii) Analyze and/or predict the probability of an occurrence relating to the casino game; and/or

(iv) Analyze and/or predict the strategy for playing or wagering to be used in the casino game. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(12) Skim, or attempt to skim, casino gaming proceeds by excluding anything of value from the deposit, counting, collection, or computation of:

(i) Gross revenues from gaming operations or activities;

(ii) Net gaming proceeds; and/or

(iii) Amounts due the state pursuant to applicable casino gaming-related laws. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(13) Cheat, or attempt to cheat, in the performance of his or her duties as a dealer or other casino employee by conducting one's self in a manner that is deceptive to the public or alters the normal random selection of characteristics or the normal chance or result of the game, including, but not limited to, using cards, dice, or any cheating device(s) that have been marked, tampered with, or altered. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(14) Possess or use, or attempt to use, without proper authorization from the state lottery division, while in the gaming facility any key or device designed for the purpose of or suitable for opening or entering any self-redemption unit (kiosk), vault, video lottery terminal, drop box, or any secured area in the gaming facility that contains casino gaming and/or surveillance equipment, computers, electrical systems, currency, cards, chips, dice, or any other thing of value. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(15) Tamper and/or interfere, or attempt to tamper and/or interfere, with any casino gaming and/or surveillance equipment, including, but not limited to, related computers and electrical systems. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(16) Access, interfere with, infiltrate, hack into, or infect, or attempt to access, interfere with, infiltrate, hack into, or infect, any casino gaming-related computer, network, hardware and/or software or other equipment. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(17) Sell, trade, barter, profit from, or otherwise use to one's financial advantage, or attempt to sell, trade, barter, profit from, or otherwise use to one's financial advantage, any confidential information related to casino-gaming operations, including, but not limited to, data (whether stored on a computer's software, hardware, network, or elsewhere), passwords, codes, surveillance and security characteristics and/or vulnerabilities, and/or non-public internal controls, policies, and procedures related thereto. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(18) Conduct a gaming operation, or attempt to conduct a gaming operation, where wagering is used or to be used without a license issued by, or authorization from, the division of state lottery. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(19) Provide false information and/or testimony to the division of state lottery, department of business regulation, or their authorized representatives and/or the state police while under oath. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or both;

(20) Play a casino game and/or make a wager, or attempt to play a casino game and/or make a wager, if under the age of eighteen (18) years. Any person charged under this section shall be referred to family court; or

(21) Permit, or attempt to permit, a person to play a casino game and/or accept, or attempt to accept, a wager from a person, if he or she is under the age of eighteen (18) years. Any person convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than one year or a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.

Legislative History

P.L. 2013, ch. 106, § 4; P.L. 2013, ch. 107, § 4; P.L. 2018, ch. 47, art. 4, § 6; P.L. 2019, ch. 308, art. 2, § 11.