Gilpin County and the Unique Impact of Gaming Tourism on Our Work

The First Judicial District Attorney’s Office serves both Jefferson and Gilpin Counties. Within our office, we are the prosecutors dedicated specifically to Gilpin County: Senior Deputy District Attorney Bruce Brown primarily handles felony cases, while Deputy District Attorney Robert Vanneste focuses on misdemeanors.

Jefferson County is one of the most populous counties in Colorado, with over 576,000 residents. In contrast, Gilpin is the second-smallest county in the state by size, and has a population of just under 6,000. Despite representing only about 1% of the population we serve, Gilpin County accounts for 6% of our total caseload, a disproportionately high share. So, why is that?

Gilpin County may be small, but it is unique. In addition to beautiful mountain peaks, abundant wildlife, and plentiful recreation opportunities, it is home to the Central City-Black Hawk National Historic District, which honors Gilpin’s pivotal role in the mid-19th-century gold rush and the formation of Colorado as a territory, and later, a state. Before the gold rush, the land that is now Gilpin County was home to Indigenous peoples, including the Ute, Arapaho, and Cheyenne tribes, who lived, hunted, and traveled throughout the region for generations.

Today, Black Hawk and Central City, along with Cripple Creek in Teller County, are the three historic mountain towns where Colorado voters approved limited-stakes gambling in 1990, with casinos opening in 1991. Since then, subsequent ballot measures and legislation have expanded gaming by removing bet limits, adding new types of games, and allowing 24-hour casino operations. Black Hawk and Central City dominate Colorado’s gaming market, generating approximately 85% of statewide casino revenue among the three towns

Crime Trends Unique to Vice Tourism

On a typical day, more than 20,000 people visit Gilpin County. Unlike other high-country tourist destinations such as Summit, Eagle, and Pitkin Counties, where visitors primarily come for outdoor recreation, Gilpin County experiences a unique form of “vice tourism” centered around gaming. Combined with a small resident population, this steady influx of visitors drawn to gaming contributes to disproportionately high crime and case rates in the County. The majority (70%) of cases we file in Gilpin County are gaming-related, which means the crime occurred in a casino, after leaving a casino, or is otherwise related to gaming activity.

The case types that are most likely to be gaming-related are drug and property cases, which include charges like theft, forgery, and fraud. Approximately 80% of these are gaming-related.

For certain categories of property cases, the connection is even stronger: about 90% of theft charges, 89% of identity theft charges, and 88% of forgery charges are gaming-related, highlighting the central role gaming plays in driving these offenses.

Approximately one quarter of gaming-related theft cases are felony level, where the theft is typically more than $2,000.

Disproportionately High Crime and Case Rates

Criminal justice indicators are usually compared across different places as rates, which are crimes or cases per 100,000 population. In 2024, our deputy district attorneys handled 20,422 cases for Jefferson County and 997 for Gilpin County. When adjusted for county populations, Jefferson County had a criminal case rate of 3,537 per 100,000 residents, while Gilpin’s case rate was 16,841 - illustrating the outsized contribution that Gilpin County makes to our office’s caseload.

Again, some specific case rates really stand out. DUI case rates in Gilpin County are the highest in the state, and property crime (charges like theft, trespass, and criminal mischief) case rates are more than five times those in Jefferson County, likely reflecting the combined influence of gaming, alcohol use, and drug consumption.

Although not every reported crime results in a filed criminal case, these elevated case rates are the result of some of the highest crime rates in Colorado. In addition to the highest DUI case rate, Gilpin reported the second-highest property crime rate in the state. The high property crime rate is primarily driven by larceny theft (3,547 per 100,000 population). Larceny theft is an FBI-defined category that includes thefts from persons, motor vehicles, buildings, and coin-operated devices or machines. The offense counts are reported by local law enforcement agencies to the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). The visualization below illustrates Gilpin’s larceny theft rates compared to those of Jefferson County and the statewide average.

Prosecuting a Tourist-Driven Caseload

Another result of gaming tourism is that overwhelmingly, individuals charged with a crime in Gilpin County are visitors from outside the area. While about half of Jefferson County defendants reside outside of Jefferson County, 90% of our Gilpin County cases involve a defendant who does not live in Gilpin County.

A recent felony case illustrates the challenges of our Gilpin caseload. A couple from the Denver area drove to a casino where they spent the evening consuming alcohol and gambling. Early the next morning, an argument escalated, and the defendant physically assaulted his wife, causing serious bodily injury. As she fled, he reportedly threatened to kill her. He was later arrested by a Black Hawk Police officer after returning to the casino.

To ensure victims in Gilpin County receive the necessary support, our office has a dedicated Victim/Witness Specialist, Linda Smith, assigned to all Gilpin felony cases. Linda plays a critical role in guiding victims through the criminal justice process, providing trauma-informed emotional support, connecting them with vital services, and serving as a steady point of contact throughout each stage of the case. Many Gilpin victims, like in this case, live outside the area, making it more difficult to meet with them in person and provide the same level of support offered to victims in Jefferson County. Victims are also less likely to attend court hearings in person. Virtual technology helps bridge this gap, but can hinder the relationship-building and trust that often come from face-to-face interactions.

These are just some of the challenges resulting from the intersection of alcohol, gambling, and domestic violence that we often encounter in Gilpin County, and the resulting complexities of prosecuting these cases and effectively serving the victims.

Gaming Impact Grants

The Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners and County Accountant secured Limited Gaming Impact Grant funding through the Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) to support victims and ensure accountability for offenders. This grant program reflects the legislature’s acknowledgement of the financial and social impacts gaming imposes on local communities. While the funding helps mitigate the disproportionate burden placed on our office by gaming-related prosecutions, it covers less than half of the actual cost of handling these cases.

Summary

From the gold rush of 1859 to today, Gilpin County has remained Colorado’s destination for those in search of riches. With legalized gambling as its central economic engine, Gilpin sees a steady influx of visitors engaging in high-risk environments that involve cash, alcohol, and sometimes drugs. Data shows these environments create conditions ripe for crimes like theft, forgery, identity fraud, DUIs, drugs, and domestic violence. Even though Gilpin’s population is small, the volume and nature of its tourism-driven crime create a disproportionately large impact on our caseload and the criminal justice system in the First Judicial District.