Childs v. State
Nevada Supreme Court
864 P.2d 277 (1993)
- Written by Brett Stavin, JD
Facts
Timothy John Childs (defendant) was convicted of fraudulent slot-machine manipulation in July 1990 based on handle popping, a procedure that entailed skillful manipulation of the slot-machine handle so that one or more of the reels ceased spinning prematurely. The procedure did not damage the slot machine and required no artificial device to cause the machine to malfunction. Childs appealed immediately thereafter. Ultimately, in September 1991, Childs won that appeal, Childs v. State (Childs I), in which the Nevada Supreme Court held that the relevant statute, Nevada Revised Statutes (N.R.S.) 465.070(7), was unconstitutionally vague because it did not define what constituted a normal pull of a slot-machine handle. Specifically, N.R.S. 465.070(7) provided that it was unlawful for any person “to manipulate, with the intent to cheat, any component of a gaming device in a manner contrary to the designed and normal operational purpose for the component, including, but not limited to, varying the pull of a handle of a slot machine, with knowledge that the manipulation affects the outcome of the game or with knowledge of any event that affects the outcome of the game.” While the appeal in Childs I was still pending, Childs was observed in two casinos again engaged in the same handle-popping conduct. For this conduct, Childs was charged with one count of fraudulent slot-machine manipulation and one count of attempted fraudulent slot-machine manipulation. Childs was sentenced to concurrent terms of five and 10 years in state prison. Childs appealed, arguing that the statute was unconstitutionally vague because, as in Childs I, it did not sufficiently describe what kind of conduct was prohibited.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Steffen, J.)
Dissent (Recanzone, J.)
Dissent (Springer, J.)
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