South Carolina Bans Betting in Private Card Games

Section 16-19-40 of the South Carolina Code, first enacted in 1802 and last amended by 1999 Act No. 125, criminalizes playing "any game with cards or dice" -- or betting "on the sides or hands of such as do game" -- in a tavern, store, "barn, kitchen, stable or other outhouse," street, or "any house used as a place of gaming." The statute names no dollar threshold and carries no dwelling exemption: a kitchen-table poker game with cash on the table falls squarely inside the listed venues.

The only relief is Section 16-19-60, added by 2014 Act No. 194 (S.779), effective June 2, 2014. It shields members of a "club or other social organization" who gather in a private residence, home, or community clubhouse to play tiles, cards, or dice -- canasta, mahjong, and bridge are named examples -- but only if every one of six conditions holds: no mechanical, electronic, or video gaming device is used; no slot machine, pull tab, punch board, or pull board is involved; no person or entity, including the host or the property's owner or lessee, receives any direct or indirect economic, financial, or monetary benefit; there is "no betting, wagering, or gambling of any kind"; a bona fide social relationship exists among the players; and, apart from skill or luck, the risk of winning or losing is equal for everyone at the table.

Because Section 16-19-60 requires the total absence of wagering, it does not create a "social gambling" safe harbor in the sense other states use the term -- a home game where players ante real money remains prosecutable under Section 16-19-40 regardless of how small the stakes are or how well the players know each other. South Carolina has no separate gaming commission for this offense; it is enforced as ordinary criminal law by local police and magistrates, with the state's Education Lottery Commission playing no role.

A player convicted under Section 16-19-40 before a magistrate faces up to thirty days in jail or a fine up to one hundred dollars, per offense. Anyone who keeps the house or other place "used as a place for gaming" faces a harsher penalty on indictment: up to twelve months' imprisonment and a fine up to two thousand dollars per offense. Losing any of Section 16-19-60's six conditions -- charging a rake or using an electronic device, for example -- exposes the host to the keeper-level charge.