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CITE

    18 USC Sec. 1955                                            01/05/2009

EXPCITE

    TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
    PART I - CRIMES
    CHAPTER 95 - RACKETEERING

HEAD

    Sec. 1955. Prohibition of illegal gambling businesses

STATUTE

      (a) Whoever conducts, finances, manages, supervises, directs, or
    owns all or part of an illegal gambling business shall be fined
    under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
      (b) As used in this section -
        (1) "illegal gambling business" means a gambling business which
      -
          (i) is a violation of the law of a State or political
        subdivision in which it is conducted;
          (ii) involves five or more persons who conduct, finance,
        manage, supervise, direct, or own all or part of such business;
        and
          (iii) has been or remains in substantially continuous
        operation for a period in excess of thirty days or has a gross
        revenue of $2,000 in any single day.
        (2) "gambling" includes but is not limited to pool-selling,
      bookmaking, maintaining slot machines, roulette wheels or dice
      tables, and conducting lotteries, policy, bolita or numbers
      games, or selling chances therein.
        (3) "State" means any State of the United States, the District
      of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory
      or possession of the United States.
      (c) If five or more persons conduct, finance, manage, supervise,
    direct, or own all or part of a gambling business and such business
    operates for two or more successive days, then, for the purpose of
    obtaining warrants for arrests, interceptions, and other searches
    and seizures, probable cause that the business receives gross
    revenue in excess of $2,000 in any single day shall be deemed to
    have been established.
      (d) Any property, including money, used in violation of the
    provisions of this section may be seized and forfeited to the
    United States. All provisions of law relating to the seizures,
    summary, and judicial forfeiture procedures, and condemnation of
    vessels, vehicles, merchandise, and baggage for violation of the
    customs laws; the disposition of such vessels, vehicles,
    merchandise, and baggage or the proceeds from such sale; the
    remission or mitigation of such forfeitures; and the compromise of
    claims and the award of compensation to informers in respect of
    such forfeitures shall apply to seizures and forfeitures incurred
    or alleged to have been incurred under the provisions of this
    section, insofar as applicable and not inconsistent with such
    provisions. Such duties as are imposed upon the collector of
    customs or any other person in respect to the seizure and
    forfeiture of vessels, vehicles, merchandise, and baggage under the
    customs laws shall be performed with respect to seizures and
    forfeitures of property used or intended for use in violation of
    this section by such officers, agents, or other persons as may be
    designated for that purpose by the Attorney General.
      (e) This section shall not apply to any bingo game, lottery, or
    similar game of chance conducted by an organization exempt from tax
    under paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of section 501 of the
    Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, if no part of the gross
    receipts derived from such activity inures to the benefits of any
    private shareholder, member, or employee of such organization
    except as compensation for actual expenses incurred by him in the
    conduct of such activity.

SOURCE

    (Added Pub. L. 91-452, title VIII, Sec. 803(a), Oct. 15, 1970, 84
    Stat. 937; amended Pub. L. 99-514, Sec. 2, Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat.
    2095; Pub. L. 103-322, title XXXIII, Sec. 330016(1)(N), Sept. 13,
    1994, 108 Stat. 2148.)

REFERENCES IN TEXT

      The customs laws, referred to in subsec. (d), are classified
    generally to Title 19, Customs Duties.
      Paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of section 501 of the Internal
    Revenue Code of 1986, referred to in subsec. (e), is classified to
    section 501(c)(3) of Title 26, Internal Revenue Code.

AMENDMENTS

      1994 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-322 substituted "fined under this
    title" for "fined not more than $20,000".
      1986 - Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 99-514 substituted "Internal Revenue
    Code of 1986" for "Internal Revenue Code of 1954".

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS

      Offices of collector of customs, comptroller of customs, surveyor
    of customs, and appraiser of merchandise in Bureau of Customs of
    Department of the Treasury to which appointments were required to
    be made by President with advice and consent of Senate ordered
    abolished, with such offices to be terminated not later than Dec.
    31, 1966, by Reorg. Plan No. 1 of 1965, eff. May 25, 1965, 30 F.R.
    7035, 79 Stat. 1317, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government
    Organization and Employees. Functions of offices eliminated were
    already vested in Secretary of the Treasury by Reorg. Plan No. 26
    of 1950, eff. July 31, 1950, 15 F.R. 4935, 64 Stat. 1280, set out
    in the Appendix to Title 5.

NATIONAL GAMBLING IMPACT STUDY COMMISSION

      Pub. L. 104-169, Aug. 3, 1996, 110 Stat. 1482, as amended by Pub.
    L. 105-30, Sec. 1, July 25, 1997, 111 Stat. 248, established the
    National Gambling Impact Study Commission to conduct a
    comprehensive legal and factual study of the social and economic
    impacts of gambling in the United States on Federal, State, local,
    and Native American tribal governments, as well as on communities
    and social institutions generally, including individuals, families,
    and businesses within such communities and institutions, and to
    submit a report, not later than two years after its first meeting,
    to the President, the Congress, State Governors, and Native
    American tribal governments containing the Commission's findings
    and conclusions, together with any recommendations of the
    Commission, and further provided for membership of the Commission,
    meetings, powers and duties of the Commission, personnel matters,
    contracts for research with the Advisory Commission on
    Intergovernmental Relations and the National Research Council,
    definitions, appropriations, and termination of the Commission 60
    days after submission of its final report.
                          PRIORITY OF STATE LAWS
      Enactment of this section as not indicating an intent on the part
    of the Congress to occupy the field in which this section operates
    to the exclusion of State of local law on the same subject matter,
    or to relieve any person of any obligation imposed by any State or
    local law, see section 811 of Pub. L. 91-452, set out as a Priority
    of State Laws note under section 1511 of this title.
          COMMISSION ON REVIEW OF NATIONAL POLICY TOWARD GAMBLING
      Sections 804-809 of Pub. L. 91-452 established Commission on
    Review of National Policy Toward Gambling, provided for its
    membership and compensation of members and staff, empowered
    Commission to subpoena witnesses and grant immunity, required
    Commission to make a study of gambling in United States and
    existing Federal, State, and local policy and practices with
    respect to prohibition and taxation of gambling activities and to
    make a final report of its findings and recommendations to
    President and to Congress within four years of its establishment,
    and provided for its termination sixty days after submission of
    final report.