(A) (1) No person shall open, keep or maintain any gaming house in any building within the city, or suffer or permit any description of gaming or playing any game of chance or skill for money, goods, chattels or other things whatever, nor shall it be lawful for anyone to participate in or engage in any device of gaming whatever in any building, street, lane, alley, court, park, lot or public way within the city.
(2) This section shall not be construed to prohibit fund-raising bingo games or raffles when conducted by bona-fide charitable organizations.
(B) (1) No person shall open, keep, maintain, dock, moor, anchor or operate any gaming vessel within the corporate limits of the city, or suffer any vessel to operate from any marina, terminal or maritime facility within the corporate limits of the city for the purpose of embarking or disembarking persons whose intent is to utilize gambling devices.
(2) A
GAMING VESSEL is one:
(a) That provides gambling devices;
(b) That does not provide overnight accommodations for its passengers; and/or
(c) That is not primarily engaged in carrying passengers between ports in the U.S. or foreign countries.
(3) A
GAMBLING DEVICE is:
(a) Any so-called “slot machine” or any other machine or mechanical device, an essential part of which is a drum or reel with insignia thereon, and which when operated may deliver, as the result of the application of an element of chance, any money or grope or the operation of which a person may become entitled to receive, as the result of the application of any element of chance, any money or properly;
(b) Any other machine or mechanical device (including, but not limited to roulette wheels and similar devices) designed and manufactured primarily for use in connection with gambling and which when operated may deliver, as the result of the application of an element of chance, and money or property;
(c) By the operation of which a person may become entitled to receive, as the result of the application of an element of chance, any money or property; or
(d) Any subassembly or essential part intended to be used in connection with any machine or mechanical device, but which is not attached to any machine or mechanical device as a constituent part.
(`95 Code, § 9-4-2) (Am. Ord. 04-99, passed 2-2-99) Penalty, see § 10.99
Statutory reference:
Bingo games, S.C. Code §§ 12-21-3920 et seq.
Gambling, S.C. Code §§ 16-19-10 et seq.