Engaging in illegal gambling

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The involvement in illicit gambling is an offense that in Germany in § 285 of the Criminal Code is normalized.

According to this , anyone who takes part in unauthorized public gambling within the meaning of Section 284 of the Criminal Code is punished with a prison sentence of up to six months or a fine .

Background and details

The current standard corresponds to the old version of § 284a StGB in terms of offense and scope of punishment and was inserted within the framework of the 6th Criminal Law Reform Act. Compared to the unauthorized organization of a game of chance , the regulation primarily covers the players and not the organizers. If they also participate as players, they are usually punished according to § 284 StGB, so that § 285 resigns. If there is an official permit , the question of illegality does not need to be clarified, since the offense has already not been met.

Act and guilt

The offender must as players participate and be intent include the general public of the game and its quality as gambling. If he minimizes or excludes his gambling risk through manipulation , an offense with fraud in accordance with § 263 StGB possible. Since it is not necessary to operate the game commercially, the offense is also punishable by anyone who only takes part in it on one occasion.

When it comes to the guilt of the perpetrator, it is often asked whether and to what extent pathological gambling can have an impact and must be examined when assessing the case. After the jurisprudence of the Federal Court , the so-called. Gambling addiction in isolation no mental abnormality within the meaning of § 20 of the Criminal Code is that the criminal responsibility preclude or significantly diminish. If, on the other hand, the self-destructive behavior of the player leads "to the most severe changes in personality" or if he has "suffered from severe withdrawal symptoms during procurement acts", it is possible that his culpability is reduced according to § 21 StGB.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Thomas Fischer : § 285, Participation in unauthorized gambling , Rn. 2, in: Criminal Code and ancillary laws. CH Beck, Munich 2012, p. 2068
  2. ↑ Thomas Fischer: § 285, Participation in unauthorized gambling , Rn. 2, in: Criminal Code and ancillary laws. CH Beck, Munich 2012, p. 2068
  3. ↑ Thomas Fischer: § 285, Participation in unauthorized gambling , Rn. 3, in: Criminal Code and ancillary laws. CH Beck, Munich 2012, p. 2068