Davidson County Sheriff's Office cracks down on 34 local sweepstakes businesses
The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office has served notice to 34 sweepstakes gaming businesses that they will be charged with breaking the law if they continue to pay out cash prizes.
“We have been working on this for some time,” said Davidson County Sheriff Richie Simmons. “These businesses are paying out cash, which is illegal, and we are going to continue to enforce these laws. ... Not only that, but we have had a number of incidents of illegal activity, such as shootings and drug activity, associated with these businesses.”
Want to know more about what is happening in Davidson County? Support local journalism, subscribe to The Dispatch.
After receiving these notices, all but nine of these electronic gaming parlors have closed.
Those nine businesses, five in Lexington, three in Thomasville and one in Wallburg, have filed an injunction with the Davidson County court allowing them to remain open until the hearing set for Dec. 13.
A letter signed by Simmons and Davidson County District Attorney Garry Frank noted that the sheriff’s office will begin charging for violations of the ban on electronic sweepstakes machines, video gaming machines, and slot machines under North Carolina General Statue 14-306.
“Our goal in providing this advance notice of potential law enforcement action is to allow a reasonable amount of time for local owners and operators to comply with the law in the event they are currently not in compliance,” the letter noted.
According to NCGS 14-306, any machine (including fish games and other like devices) that awards points or credits that are redeemable for cash in any amount are prohibited.
“Any person who owns or is involved in the operation of prohibited machines may be subject to criminal penalties, including managers or employees," noted the letter. These penalties range from misdemeanor charges to felony charges for repeated infractions.
There have not been any criminal charges to date brought against any of the owners of the businesses who received the letter.
According to the state statute, law enforcement is allowed to confiscate any machines found in violation.
According Simmons, the yearlong investigation determined through information provided by citizens and undercover work by detectives that the businesses served with the letter were giving out cash for wins and alleged rigging the games to increase chances of winning.
These sweepstakes or skills game businesses have long been a source of contention among law enforcement and government officials.
In 2010, North Carolina banned internet-based sweepstakes games, which resembled casino or slots-style games where players were rewarded with cash, on the basis that they were outlawed under the state’s gambling law. The state Supreme Court upheld the law in 2012.
Earlier this year, state legislators proposed a bill that would make video lottery games legal by requiring them to be licensed, monitored and taxed. House Bill 954 is still being discussed at committee level and has not come for a vote in the state House.
In 2019, the City of Lexington issued a moratorium on new permits for businesses operating table-mounted video games that pay out rewards, usually cash, for accumulating points by “catching” electronic fish. As a result, the city updated its land ordinance to reflect state laws concerning prohibiting electronic gaming businesses that illegally have cash disbursements.
Davidson County does not have any current regulations restricting electronic sweepstakes games. One of the problems is that once a regulation is put in place, the manufacturing companies find a way to get around it by reprogramming the software in these sweepstakes machines, making it difficult to differentiate between illegal gaming machines and arcade machines.
“This is not new,” said Frank. “There is a considerable amount of public position on both sides of the issue.”
General news reporter Sharon Myers can be reached at sharon.myers@the-dispatch.com. Follow her on Twitter @LexDispatchSM.
This article originally appeared on The Dispatch: Davidson County Sheriff's Office cracks down on sweepstakes businesses
