The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Hawaii is cracking down on illegal gambling operations in the state.

The latest enforcement action includes five cases that resulted in charges against 15 defendants, U.S. Attorney Kenji Price announced in a press conference Tuesday.

Hawaiian gambling laws are strict, as they prohibit gambling aboard ships or in casinos of any kind and wagering on horse or dog races. In fact, the only type of gambling allowed in the Aloha States is social gambling, but only if it is not committed in a motel, hotel, nightclub, bar, or any business establishment or public place. There are only two states out of the 50 in America with no legalized gambling: Utah and Hawaii. The former has a deeply religious population and happily maintains its exception from the gambling culture of the United States. Hawaii, however, has abstained from joining the industry because of the precarious. Honolulu Police carried out a search warrant on Tuesday evening on a suspected illegal gambling room in the Kapahulu area. A 54-year-old woman and a 34-year-old woman were both arrested in the raid. Federal authorities and local law enforcement on Monday busted an illegal gambling operation spanning two residences on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, resulting in federal charges for 15 suspects.

Gambling operations have “spread their tentacles into residential areas, jeopardizing the safety and security of communities like Pearl City and Waipahu,” he said.

U.S. Attorney Kenji Price says illegal gambling operations are spreading to residential areas in Hawaii.

Two of the five cases involve gambling businesses operating out of single-family homes in the two communities he mentioned. In the Pearl City case, a patron was also allegedly robbed at gunpoint after he won $4,000 playing an electronic video gambling machine.

The U.S. Attorney would not say if they were renters or owners. He said the investigations were ongoing.

Price said part of the strategy in dealing with illegal gambling cases is to utilize civil and criminal asset forfeiture. His office created a special notice to notify homeowners about forfeiture.

“If you or anyone else you know happens to get a cut of the proceeds of illegal gambling, we’ll be trying to seize that too,” he said.

However, asset forfeiture is a law enforcement tactic that often draws heavy criticism from civil rights groups. The American Civil Liberties Union says “many police departments use forfeiture to benefit their bottom lines, making seizures motivated by profit rather than crime-fighting.”

When asked about what steps homeowners can take when they receive a federal asset forfeiture notice, Price said they should seek legal counsel.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office Asset Forfeiture Notice is being sent to homeowners whose properties may be used in illegal gambling operations.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office of Hawaii is cooperating with not only local law enforcement, such as the Honolulu Police Department, but also other federal law enforcement agencies to crack down on illegal gambling in Hawaii.

That includes the Department of Homeland Security and its investigative arm, Homeland Security Investigations, which typically gets involved when it’s a transnational crime.

That’s because crimes like illegal gambling often involve money exchanges that go beyond borders, said John Tobon, the acting special agent in charge of HSI for the Honolulu field office. And criminal organizations abroad are buying real estate in Honolulu, he added.

Illegal gambling is also indicative of other criminal activity, Tobon said. “If we look at history, when we look at illegal gambling dens, we are looking at some type of organized crime or a wave of criminal actors to gain funding for other activities,” he said.

The money that’s collected through these dens is often used to fund things like narcotics and firearms, he said.

“It helps them promote other types of activities that hurt our community,” Tobon said.

Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard said her agency will continue to cooperate with federal agencies. “We are going to go after the people who are committing these crimes.”

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Is Online Gambling Legal in the State Of Hawaii?

Of all the States, only Hawaii and Utah have such comprehensive anti-gambling legislation. In the Island State, only social poker games where nobody makes a profit (not even from selling beverages) are allowed. That is it, no casinos, no charity gambling, no lottery and no sports. This article explains the Hawaii gambling laws (or rather anti-gambling laws) in detail.

First up below, a quick-fire overview of the history of gambling in this State can be found. This consists of heavyweight legislation and many busts. Next a game-by-game guide, which covers the specifics of what you can’t do. After that a legislative timeline can be found, including the key passages from the statute books. Finally, I have summarized the key points – and then speculated on how gambling in Hawaii might look in the future.

Chumba Casino Hawaii – Sweepstakes Casino Option

Chumba Casino is available in Hawaii and gives players the chance to play online casino games for real cash prizes.

Hawaii Gambling Laws – A Brief History

This State was formed in 1959 – and gambling has been against the law ever since. In pre-State colony days, there was a horse-racing scene, and I am sure many bets were laid on the black market on those races. These declined and stopped in the 1940’s and efforts to legislate have met with no success since.

Periodically, headlines scream of big busts of just about every kind of gambling you can think of. These include a ‘Lottery Queen’, a major indicted in connection gambling extortion, a sports-betting ring getting busted and the seizure of gambling machines. If nothing else this shows that there is still a significant appetite among Hawaiians for gambling, even if their government shows no signs of budging on the legal perspective.

Most recently, there have been bills introduced in 2010 and 2012 requesting that a study be done into setting up a casino and the regulation of online poker respectively. These caused a stir in the media – but did not get far through the legislative process before being killed off.

Hawaii Gambling Laws – An Overview of Which Gambling Games Are Legal

Casino Games: No, like most forms of gambling, this is strictly against the law in Hawaii – the closest legal US casino by distance would be in the State of California.

Online Casinos: No, online gambling is covered by the broad definition of what constitutes a gambling game in this State. Basically any game with a chance element, and some risk / reward, even if skill can materially affect the outcome.

Live Poker: Yes, you can play poker socially in Hawaii. There are strict rules surrounding social poker games. No profit can be taken by any house or individual organizer. This extends to profiting by selling food or beverages, which rules out pub leagues which are popular even in conservative States like Utah where poker is also social-only.

Online Poker: No, there have been some recent bills which would regulate online poker games – though these have not made it far through the legislative process before being killed off.

Sports Betting: No, there are no racetracks or pari-mutuel betting machines. Hawaii has a rich history of horse racing, starting in the 1800’s and continuing until the end of the 1940’s when this died out.

Lottery Betting: No, this is one of the few states which does not have a lottery nor participate in any inter-State lottery programs.

Bingo Games: No, there are not even any provisions for charitable raffle or bingo gambling in Hawaii.

Hawaii Gambling Laws – Timeline of Key Statutes

Gambling Illegal In Hawaii

The main gambling provisions have remained largely unchanged since the State joined the US in 1959. Unlike in other States, any amendments have strengthened the anti-gambling rules – rather than allowed certain types of gambling to occur. Like many legal definitions, the ones Hawaii uses is broad enough to make sure that fans of any particular game can’t say that they are not covered. Here are the key pieces:

First their broad definition of gambling:

[su_quote cite=”Chapter 712-1220″ url=”http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/vol14_ch0701-0853/hrs0712/hrs_0712-1220.htm”]A person engages in gambling if he stakes or risks something of value upon the outcome of a contest of chance or a future contingent event not under his control or influence, upon an agreement or understanding that he or someone else will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.[/su_quote]

Is Online Gambling Illegal In Hawaii

Then, just in case you were about to play the ‘skill game’ card, their definition of a Game of Chance puts that one to bed:

[su_quote]”Contest of chance” means any contest, game, gaming scheme, or gaming device in which the outcome depends in a material degree upon an element of chance, notwithstanding that skill of the contestants may also be a factor therein.[/su_quote]

There is no getting around it, even the definition of a gambling device (also illegal) is broad enough to cover just about anything.

Why Is Gambling Illegal In Hawaii

There have been some recent attempts at legislation for gambling, though to date these have been killed off very early in the legislative process and have not gotten to committee – let alone had the opportunity to be put to the popular vote. Here are some examples:

1959: A bill is introduced to bring back Horse Racing via a track on the island of Maui, this did not pass the house of representatives.

2010: Separate bills to investigate the setup of a committee to oversee an investigation into the viability of casino gambling and a proposal to set up a State lottery. Neither bill made it as far as the floor.

2012: A bill (number 2242) requesting the setup of another committee, this time to look into the regulation of online poker is submitted – again, it is killed off before there is a chance of a serious debate.

Talk of yet more bills periodically gets the poker press excited. Experienced commentators suggest otherwise, that the opposition to gambling is strong enough in the Island State to ensure keep the status-quo for the foreseeable future.

Hawaii Gambling Laws – Summary and a Look into The Future

Along with Utah, this is the strictest anti-gambling State of all, with only social poker games allowed for residents. One thing to bear in mind is that individual participants in gambling games are rarely affected by the regular busts and crack-downs – which are aimed at the organizers and profiteers. Residents wishing to gamble at offshore operators may be breaking the law in the strict sense, though they are doing so with minimal risk of being personally prosecuted. Please take legal advice before making your own decision on whether to play online poker at offshore sites from Hawaii.

The most likely future scenario for Hawaii is no change. If there is an (unlikely) drop off in tourism income then change might be possible – at the moment this State appears very happy with the current no-gambling situation.

Useful Resources:

State Laws

Wiki History (mentions horse racing)

State legislature