Seizure of Lottery Tickets for Forfeiture
What is the government’s statutory basis to seize lottery tickets for forfeiture.
Title 19 U.S.C. § 1305 states, in pertinent part:
“All persons are prohibited from importing into the United States from any foreign country … any lottery ticket, or any printed paper that may be used as a lottery ticket, or any advertisement of any lottery . … [A]ll such articles … shall be subject to seizure and forfeiture as hereinafter provided . …”
19 U.S.C. § 1305(a).
The statute also establishes enforcement procedures and authorizes the seizure of any such lottery tickets by an “appropriate customs officer.” 19 U.S.C. § 1305(b). The statute also allows the institution of forfeiture proceedings by the United States Attorney in the district where the seizure took place.
In Couvertier v. Gil Bonar, 173 F.3d 450 (1st Cir. 1999), Couvertier sought the recovery of $45,828 plus interest in prized Puerto Rican lottery tickets that Customs officers seized under 19 U.S.C. § 1305 as he arrived in Puerto Rico from the U.S. Virgin Islands. Id. at 451. He argued that the seizure of the lottery tickets was unauthorized because the U.S. Virgin Islands is not a foreign country for purposes of the statute. Id. The court rejected the Claimant’s argument because while the Tariff Act does not define the term “foreign country,” it does define the term “United States” as including “all Territories and possessions of the United States except the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Wake Island, Midway Islands, Kingman Reef, Johnston Island and the island of Guam.” Id. at 452 (emphasis in original) (quoting 19 U.S.C. § 1401(h)).
The First Circuit thus determined that “[a] plain and proper reading of the statute supports the conclusion that the U.S.V.I. are deemed a ‘foreign country’ for purposes of the [Tariff] Act.” Id. This case stands for the proposition that the U.S. Virgin Islands is considered a “foreign country” for purposes of 19 U.S.C. § 1305. The Couvertier court also noted the Tariff Act’s purpose was to “avoid the importation into the United States of various types of printed material including lottery tickets,” noting that, “[i]nasmuch as the U.S.V.I. have preserved their own customs territory, independent from United States customs control, allowing entry of this material from the U.S.V.I. would circumvent the statute’s goal.” Id. The Third Circuit has similarly recognized that the Tariff Act excludes the U.S. Virgin Islands from its definition of the United States and that, “since the acquisition of the Virgin Islands, Congress has consistently asserted its authority to impose a border between the Virgin Islands and the rest of the United States for customs purposes….” United States v. Hyde, 37 F.3d 116, 121, 30 V.I. 475 (3d Cir. 1994).
Read more about federal seizure for forfeiture of property.
This article was last updated on Friday, March 14, 2025.
