§ 39-17-505 — Possession of gambling device or record - Forfeiture

(a) (1) A person commits an offense who knowingly owns, manufactures, possesses, buys, sells, rents, leases, stores, repairs, transports, prints, or makes any gambling device or record. (2) It is not an offense for a person to own or possess in this state a lottery ticket originating from a state in which a lottery is lawful, if the ticket is not owned or possessed for the purpose of resale. (3) It is not an offense for a person to knowingly own, manufacture, possess, buy, sell, rent, lease, store, repair, transport, print or make any gambling device or record if the device or record is owned, manufactured, possessed, bought, sold, rented, leased, stored, repaired, transported, printed or made pursuant to title 4, chapter 51, part 1 and part 6 of this chapter. (4) It is not an offense for a person to knowingly own, manufacture, possess, buy, sell, rent, lease, store, repair, transport, print or make any gambling device or record if the device or record is for the purpose of conducting an annual event pursuant to title 3, chapter 17, and part 6 of this chapter. (5) (A) It shall not be an offense for a manufacturer of gambling devices to knowingly own, manufacture, assemble, design, possess, buy, sell, rent, lease, store, repair, transport, print or make any gambling device or record solely intended for gambling outside of this state and in compliance with the laws of the United States. The requirement that the manufacturing, selling or leasing of gambling devices be intended solely for gambling outside of the state shall not restrict uses of the gambling devices by the manufacturer that are ancillary or accessorial to the manufacturing, selling or leasing process or business, including, but not limited to, using the gambling devices for research and development, employee training, compliance program initiatives, testing and quality assurance processes, showroom display, leasing or purchasing or selling of gambling devices or parts or equipment, storage or warehousing of gambling devices or parts or equipment, maintenance or refurbishing of gambling devices or parts or equipment, and safekeeping of gambling devices or parts or equipment for future litigation. Also considered ancillary or accessorial to the manufacturing, selling or leasing process or business shall be the use or operation of computers, computer servers, and similar electronic devices, hardware and software, and all gambling records, data or information owned, maintained or stored thereupon, or produced, generated, created, printed, transported or transmitted therefrom, whether paper, electronic or otherwise, in conjunction with legal gambling and in compliance with the laws of the United States. Ancillary or accessorial uses shall not include use of the gambling devices or records that would allow persons physically present in this state to place gambling bets. This subdivision (a)(5) shall not apply unless the manufacturer meets or exceeds federal government requirements pursuant to 15 U.S.C. § 1171 et seq., and any regulations promulgated pursuant to 15 U.S.C. § 1171 et seq., and provides the secretary of state with a copy of the request for registration pursuant to 15 U.S.C. § 1173 , together with copies of each gambling license or permit issued by any regulatory authority, including but not limited to any state, country, federally recognized tribe or United States territory, and pays a ten-thousand-dollar fee prior to January 1 of that year. Additionally, the manufacturer shall provide the secretary of state with proof of annual registration under 15 U.S.C. § 1173 with the office of the United States attorney general within thirty (30) days of the receipt thereof. (B) The fee imposed by subdivision (a)(5)(A) shall not apply to nonprofit corporations licensed by the department of mental health and substance abuse services and certified by the department of human services to provide vocational rehabilitation job training programs that otherwise qualify for the exemption under subdivision (a)(5)(A). (6) (A) It is not an offense for a person to own, possess, buy, or sell an antique coin machine if: (i) The antique coin machine is not used for gambling purposes; and (ii) Members of the public are not permitted to operate any antique coin machine that is displayed in public. (B) A person selling an antique coin machine shall indicate to all prospective buyers that the antique coin machine is not to be used for gambling purposes. (b) (1) Any gambling device or record is contraband and shall be subject to seizure, confiscation and forfeiture in accordance with the forfeiture provisions, compiled in chapter 11, part 7 of this title. (2) After a gambling device or record has been forfeited to the state pursuant to chapter 11, part 7 of this title, the court hearing the criminal charges resulting in the forfeiture shall order the destruction of the device or record. If the district attorney general or law enforcement agency does not believe that a gambling device or record should be destroyed in a particular case, the district attorney general shall petition the court for an alternate disposition of the record or device. If the court finds that the proposed alternate disposition reasonably ensures that the device will not be used in an unlawful manner in this state, the court may grant the petition and order the disposition of the device or record in accordance with the petition. (c) Possession of a gambling device or record is a Class B misdemeanor.

Legislative History

Amended by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 65,s 2, eff. 7/1/2021.