Texas Attorney General Opinion: JC-466 Page: 1 of 14
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0 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL - STATE OF TEXAS
JOHN CORNYN
February 21, 2002
The Honorable Jeri Yenne Opinion No. JC-0466
Brazoria County Criminal District Attorney
Brazoria County Courthouse Re: Whether peace officers serving as off-duty
111 East Locust Street, Suite 408A security guards on casino boats have authority to
Angleton, Texas 77515 make arrests and related questions
(RQ-0422-JC)
Dear Ms. Yenne:
You ask several questions about the authority of Texas peace officers serving as off-duty
security guards on casino boats that sail from a port in your county to waters beyond the territorial
jurisdiction of the State of Texas.' You ask, among other things, about these peace officers'
authority to make arrests both within the state's territorial waters and on the seas outside the
territorial boundaries of the state. Your questions raise complex issues of first impression. In
answering them, we focus primarily upon state rather than federal or international law. In addition,
your questions are quite general and we address them in only general terms. We conclude that Texas
peace officers have the authority to make arrests under state law within the state's territorial waters,
although the extent of that authority depends upon the type of peace officer and whether he or she
is within his or her jurisdiction. Once a casino boat sails beyond the state's territorial waters,
however, an officer does not have authority to keep the peace and arrest passengers under Texas law.
Federal law, the law of the ship's flag state, and international law may provide authority to keep
order on the ship outside the state's territorial waters, but are beyond the scope of this opinion.
I. LEGAL FRAMEWORK
Before addressing your specific questions, we briefly outline the relevant legal framework.
You ask about casino boats that convey passengers from a port in your county into the Gulf of
Mexico for the purpose of gambling, returning to the same port after a number of hours. State and
federal law generally prohibit gambling and other gambling related activities, see, e.g., 18 U.S.C.
1081-84 (1994) (federal gambling offenses), 15 U.S.C. 1171-78 (1994 & Supp. V 1999)
(federal restrictions on transporting gambling devices); TEX. PEN. CODE ANN. ch. 47 (Vernon 1994
'Letter from Honorable Jeri Yenne, Brazoria County Criminal District Attorney, to Honorable John Cornyn,
Texas Attorney General (Aug. 23, 2001) (on file with Opinion Committee) [hereinafter Request Letter].
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Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: JC-466, text, February 21, 2002; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth274776/m1/1/?rotate=90: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.