OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

monorable aDbert 0. cherry 

County Attorney, 

&osqlle county, 

meridian, Texas 

aUdresseU ie Attmmey 

it a ~lolatioa of the law ior 

ts of a &Tell WM or commme to their custiere ticgets 

pumhaseef~mhmadiee from 

ch ticlrots are gOOd for ahaaQBr3 

or money given asay et 

riodlcpa;tly In the saM 

wtns QF 4%6lmm%tyt" 

*It is the opin%on of the vriter that aZ1 ma& 

a&erfst&q mhemee, +a tdxe one Ueocrlbed by fM8. 

qrxestlon, are ~lat&ens of ~the lottsry lam ,9? bJ)e 

8ti&q. .%'he County Attorney*s brfsf QB the q6e@b 

Is as fellorea 

*xtmuluw4m tbatthepraperplaae tie aeapI 
Hon. nubcrt k’. Cherry - page 2 

an analysis Of tbla question would be the Constltutlon of foxas, which in Art, 3, Sot. 47 states as 

f0110*0: rllhe Legislature shall paam lawm prohlbltlng the ef+ablimkxnolt of lotteries and gfft euterprlses In thin State, as veil as the male or ti~okmts 

in lotterleg gist enterprises or other evamlonm lnmlriag the lot* principle. establishedor mxletlng In other 6tatea' (Vornon'a Annotated conetitutlon, ArLrt. 3, sea 47). In oonmtrulag this article, 

th0 Supraae Court Or Texas has held in City of Wlnk 

7. Orlffltb bmusewtlt co., 3OC S. W. (ed) 666, that 

thl~pxvrla.lon mamaotlntended to condQmmerely 

Zotterlem, but was &tenUed mlso to condtxmm the meparately l tatmd mahenem which mere wt lotteries but 

rhlch imolred tbe lottery prlncrlple or chmnoe and 

rhlch were used W entiae the oredtilous and unwary. 

~Artlche 654 and658 of the Peual Coderefer 

to *lottery* and *raffles* and were mpparently paesed by the Leglalature in obedlenoe to Art. 3, Sec.47 

of the Constitution as above referred to snd protides 

am follm~~ Art. 6~4. *If any person shall establish 

a lottery or diepose of any estate, real or perm0naJby lottery, he shall be fined not lemm than One hw-- 

dred nor wre thau one th~uaand dollars; or If fray 

permoa mhall mall, offer for sale or keep for male 

any ticket or part ticket In any lottery, he ahall be 

fined not lees than ten nor nore than fll'ty dollars. 

l Xfnnypereon shall emtmbl1mharm#le foror dimpoet I3y raffle oi any metate, real or personal, mxoeedlng five hundred dollarm In value, he mhall be 

tined not less thmn one hundred nor more than one 

thousand dollars; or If any person shall estahliah 

a raSSle Sor or shall dimpose by raffle of may mmfate, real or personal, of the value ot five hcmdred 

dollars or less, he shall be fined not lees thaa riva 

pornwre thantvo hundred dollars. Whoever shall offer fvr male or h-p for smle auy ohaaaq ticket or 

part ticket, In any raffle of amy estate, rmml or personal OS muy *us vboterer shall be tied wt lemm 

then ten nor wre than tiPty dollars.* 

l III ooamtmlng theme articles of the Penal Code 

and the Conetltutlonol pr0rimlon above referrod to, 

the courts have variaualy defined *lotteries0 and 

*r~fflos* as follover 
lion. Iiobcrt F. Cherry - page 3 

*AIRY mcheaue for the cllstribntion of prlaea by 

chanoe is a lottery, and it matters not by what nme 

muc h a l aheaue may be born, It mea within the prohibition of this article. State v'. Randle, 41 T.202 

and Rde v- State, 42 1. ti80. It la 110 lema a lottery because the aehena includea no blanka If the 

prices are of unequal value. Randle t. State 42 f. 

-5 Iloloaan v. State, 2 Cr. R. alO. bay 8Uhwe for 

the distribution of prizes is a lottery, though thore 

WUWPDblW. We's guilt of eatabllahlng a lottery 

does not depend on advise recclved am to the innocent 

characterofthe dtxlae, nOr~nhlaombellef that 

It 1pa not a riolatlon Of the lam. Qeen v. State, 

s48 8. v. 3sc 

*The CQWtB have diBtiq@ahed lott8rlea and 

raffles by defYal.ng lottery am a gane ln which there 

is a keeper or exhlblfor,‘and agalnat ahorn the better mtmkea him money, while a raffle d.8 said to be a 

gwe of perfect ahawe ln ahlch every participant Is 

OWJUd With '?V8rJ Other in the pl.OpOrtiOn Of hi8 risk 

azai prospect of gsin, the raffle having no elea8nt 

of km8perordealer andnotbelng abanklng gazae. 

Sttanem v* State, 21 T. 69% Rlmein ~0 State, 71 S-V. 

976 

aThe 1-g same, relating directly t0 a gxvup 

Of I!I~GhantB UBhg a plan which appprentiy iUWlve8 

a 'lott8ry prLnolple' a. an advertialng 8Ch5.3, 88CmB 

to be Feat&u-stone v* Indepaadent Serrloe Station AmsoclatlonoSTexa4 lnrhich the o~ortheld that where 

mm amamcimtion of dealers aold tlcketi t0 its neabmrm, 

mhlch ticketa were then @maa by the dealers to camtOWr8 andothera for thepurpomeof attracfingpatronag8, the tickets entitling the holders to a chanoe 

W rln sn aatamobile ptrrchrued by the ameoclation with 

the prooeeda of the males of the tloketa, much a 

mehma was held to be a lottery wlthin the meaning of 

the Bt.tUt8. &d It was further held that much loftery wa s l ubjwf W be enjoined by a 05petifor U&OBe 

-8. warn Injured thereby, under the rule that 

equity mill enjoin an act which awunta to a orime 

where property right. are Injured thereby= FeatheraWne T. Independent Sal-rice Station Aaaoclatlon of 

Texas, (Clr. 4p.) IO 6. U. (2d) l24. 28 lox. Jur. 

414. 
&Ion. liobort F'. Cherry - pogc 4 

l ThC plan UBOd ilY IiOsqUC ~UI’Ity does Ilot require any paraon to pay dlrootly any consldcratlon 

in order to obtain a chance at the drauln& but It 

does do 80 indireotly in that mOrChrudi8e awst be 

purchased ln order to ontitle the purchaser to the 

U&et vr chwoe, and it aeaPa to this writer are 

baaed upon the *lottery prinoiple' rcifXV?d to in 

the conatltution and under any reaeonable conatructIon or the statutes and the opinion or the courts, 

are unlawfuLm 

Xou hare tborOUf@y beefed the question BUbZIitted, 

for ahlch ae espf?ma our apprOCiatiOn* After oarefully eonmiwlerlng it, we hare concluded there la no neoemalty for any 

further ~~BCUBB~OII of the subject. It iB Our O'piniGn that 

you hare correotl7 mnmwermd the question In the affirmative. 

Verytrulypura 

ATTCRRlUllrP GRRERAL OF TEXAS 

Bruce W. Bryant 

APPROVED 

OPINION 

BUB=XR 0 

Aaalatant 

cOMMlY-TEE 

BY .d%w c**I"Y* 

APPROVEI‘AUO 10, 1939