§29-25-25 Offenses and penalties.
§29-25-25. Offenses and penalties.
(a) A gaming licensee is guilty of unlawful operation of a West Virginia Lottery table game when:
(1) The licensee operates a West Virginia Lottery table game or places a video lottery game or video lottery terminal in any location that is not a designated gaming area approved by the commission;
(2) The licensee acts or employs another person to act as if he or she is not an agent or employee of the licensee in order to encourage participation in a West Virginia Lottery table game in a gaming facility;
(3) The licensee knowingly permits an individual under the age of twenty-one years of age to enter or remain in a designated gaming area or to play video lottery terminals or West Virginia Lottery table game at a licensed gaming facility;
(4) The licensee exchanges tokens, chips or other forms of credit to be used for wagering in a gaming facility for anything of value except in exchange for money or credits to a player's account;
(5) The licensee operates a West Virginia Lottery table game or places a video lottery game or video lottery terminal into play without authority of the commission to do so;
(6) The licensee knowingly conducts, carries on, operates or exposes for play or allows to be conducted, carried on, operated or exposed for play any West Virginia Lottery table game, video lottery game, video lottery terminal or other device, equipment or material that has in any manner been tampered with or placed in a condition or operated in a manner, the result of which is designed to deceive the public; or
(7) The licensee employs an individual in a position or to perform duties, for which a license is required by this article or rules of the commission and the employee does not have a license issued under the provisions of this article or the licensee continues to employ the individual in a position or to perform duties, for which a license is required by this article or rules of the commission, after the employee's license expired, was revoked by the commission or not renewed by the commission.
(b) A person is guilty of a misdemeanor when:
(1) The person operates, carries on or exposes for play a West Virginia Lottery table game prior to obtaining a license or after the person's license has expired and prior to actual renewal of the license or before the West Virginia Lottery table game and the licensee's rules for play for the game are approved or modified and approved by the commission;
(2) The person works or is employed in a position requiring a license under the provisions of this article without having the license required by this article;
(3) A licensee who possesses any video lottery terminal or other device, equipment or material which the person knows has been manufactured, distributed, sold, tampered with or serviced in violation of the provisions of this article; or
(4) A licensee who knowingly conducts, carries on, operates or exposes for play, or allows to be conducted, carried on, operated or exposed for play any video lottery game, video lottery terminal, or other device, equipment or material which has in any manner been tampered with, or placed in a condition, or operated in a manner, the result of which tends to deceive the public or tends to alter the normal random selection of characteristics or the normal random selection of characteristics or the normal chance of the video lottery game.
(c) A person is guilty of a felony when:
(1) The person offers, promises or gives anything of value or benefit to a person who has an ownership or financial interest in, is employed by or has a service contract with a gaming facility or to that person's spouse or any dependent child or dependent parent, pursuant to an agreement or arrangement, in fact or implied from the circumstances, with intent that the promise or thing of value or benefit will influence the actions of the person in order to affect or attempt to affect the outcome of a West Virginia Lottery table game or to influence official action of the commission. For the purposes of this subdivision and subdivision (2) of this subsection, the term "person who is connected with a gaming facility" includes, but is not limited to, a person licensed under this article as well as an officer or employee of a licensee;
(2) The person solicits or knowingly accepts or receives a promise of anything of value or benefit while the person is connected with a gaming facility, pursuant to an understanding or arrangement or with the intent that the promise or thing of value or benefit will influence the actions of the person to affect or attempt to affect the outcome of a West Virginia Lottery table game or to influence official action of the commission;
(3) The person uses or possesses on property owned by the licensed gaming facility or on property contiguous to the gaming facility, with the intent to use, an electronic, electrical or mechanical device that is designed, constructed or programmed to assist the user or another person:
(A) In projecting the outcome of a West Virginia Lottery table game;
(B) In keeping track of cards dealt or in play;
(C) In analyzing the probability of the occurrence of an event relating to a West Virginia Lottery table game;
(D) In analyzing the strategy for playing or betting to be used in a West Virginia Lottery table game, except as permitted in writing by the commission; or
(E) In obtaining an advantage at playing any West Virginia Lottery table game at a licensed gaming facility authorized under this article to operate a West Virginia Lottery table game;
(4) The person cheats at a West Virginia Lottery table game in a gaming facility;
(5) The person manufacturers, sells, or distributed any cards, chips, dice, game or device which is intended to be used to violate any provision of this article or the table gaming laws of any other state;
(6) The person instructs a person in cheating or in the use of a device for that purpose with the knowledge or intent that the information or use conveyed may be employed to violate any provision of the article;
(7) The person places a bet after acquiring knowledge, not available to all players, of the outcome of the West Virginia Lottery table game which is the subject of the bet or aids a person in acquiring the knowledge for the purpose of placing a bet contingent on that outcome;
(8) The person claims, collects, takes or attempts to claim, collect or take money or anything of value into or from a gaming facility, with intent to defraud, without having made a wager contingent on winning a West Virginia Lottery table game, or claims, collects or takes an amount of money or thing of value or greater value than the amount won;
(9) The person knowingly uses chips, electronic media or tokens that are counterfeit to place a wager in a gaming facility;
(10) The person knowingly uses any medium other than chips, tokens or other methods of credit approved by the commission to place a wager in a gaming facility;
(11) The person, not a gaming licensee or employee or agent of a gaming facility licensed under this article acting in furtherance of the gaming licensee's interests, has in his or her possession on grounds owned by the gaming facility licensed under this article or on grounds contiguous to the gaming facility, any device, by whatever name called, intended to be used to violate a provision of this article or a rule of the commission implementing or explaining a provision of this article; or
(12) The person, not a gaming licensee or agent of a gaming licensee acting in furtherance of the gaming licensee's interests, has in his or her possession any key or device designed for the purpose of opening, entering or affecting the operation of a West Virginia Lottery table game, drop box or an electronic or mechanical device connected with or used in connection with a West Virginia Lottery table game in a gaming facility or for removing coins, tokens, chips or other contents therefrom.
(d) Any person who violates the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $1,000 and confined in jail for not more than six months, except that in the case of a person other than a natural person, the amount of the fine imposed may not be more than $25,000.
(e) Any person who violates the provisions of subsection (c) of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $5,000 nor more than $10,000 and committed to a state correctional facility for a term of imprisonment of not less than one year nor more than five years.
(f) With regard to subdivision (3), subsection (c) of this section, the gaming facility licensee shall post notice of this prohibition and the penalties of this section in a manner determined by the commission.