Lakewood, CA Gambling & Gaming: Card Room Licensing (2026)
Key Facts
- Local authorizing ordinance
- None adopted by Lakewood
- Card/dice games for stakes
- Prohibited citywide, § 4405
- Card room as zoning use
- Not listed as permitted/conditional
- Enforcement agency
- LA County Sheriff's Dept (contract)
- State law carve-out
- Only acts state law positively permits
Summary
Lakewood has never adopted the local authorizing ordinance California's Gambling Control Act requires before a card room can operate, and its own code goes further: Section 4405 makes it a misdemeanor to deal, open, or bet at any card, dice, or other game played for money, checks, credits, or anything of value anywhere in the city.
§ 4400. Gambling and Gaming. It is not the intention of this Chapter to prohibit any act, either positively permitted or prohibited by state law. This Chapter shall not prohibit any act, either positively permitted or prohibited by state law. ... § 4405. Gambling - Prohibited. No person shall deal, play, carry on, open, cause to be opened or conduct any game played with cards, dice or other device for money, checks, credits, or other things of value. A person shall not bet at any such game.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4901715; v5 updated 2026-04-28; through 04-28-2026).
Full Breakdown
), a city has to pass its own ordinance authorizing card rooms before one can legally operate within its limits. Lakewood has not done so. Instead, Chapter 4 of the Municipal Code, added by Ordinance 75-8, criminalizes gambling for stakes citywide. Section 4405, 'Gambling - Prohibited,' bars any person from dealing, playing, carrying on, opening, or causing to be opened any game played with cards, dice, or another device for money, checks, credits, or other things of value, and separately bars betting on such a game.
4 backs this up by making it unlawful to knowingly permit a prohibited game on premises a person owns, rents, or controls, and bars a person from even visiting a place where prohibited gambling is happening. 17. No zone district in Lakewood lists a card room as a permitted or conditional use. 5, isn't swept in. But nothing forces Lakewood to authorize card rooms, and its own ordinance forecloses them for money stakes.
Violations & Fines
Operating or patronizing a for-money card game in Lakewood is a misdemeanor under Section 4405, enforced by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department under its police-services contract with the city, not a city-run police force. Conviction carries the general Section 1200 penalty: a fine up to the state misdemeanor maximum, up to six months in county or Sheriff-run jail, or both, with each day of an ongoing game charged separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a licensed card room open in Lakewood?
Is a home poker game with friends illegal in Lakewood?
Does Lakewood's zoning code even mention card rooms?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lakewood
California rules heatmap·Compare Lakewood to another location·View the California gambling & gaming overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.
Card Room Licensing in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Los Angeles County handle card room licensing.