AG Files Lawsuit Seeking To End Native American Gaming
By: Press Release
Updated: February 19, 2013
Attorney
General
Luther Strange today announced that he has filed a lawsuit to stop the
operation of slot machines at casinos owned by the Poarch Band of Creek
Indians.
The
lawsuit was filed Tuesday in the Circuit Court of Elmore County
against PCI Gaming Authority
and the individual members of the Poarch Band's Tribal Council and
Gaming Authority in their official capacity. Although state police
officers cannot enforce state law on Indian lands by executing a warrant
to seize unlawful devices, the lawsuit contends that
the Poarch Band still has an obligation to comply with state laws that
prohibit slot-machine gambling. The lawsuit alleges that the Poarch Band
is "operating, advancing, and profiting from unlawful gambling activity
at the Creek Casino in Wetumpka, the Wind
Creek Casino in Atmore, and the Creek Casino in Montgomery in violation
of Article IV, Section 65 of the Alabama Constitution (1901) and Ala.
Code 13A-12-20 et seq."
The
lawsuit further alleges that the "continued operation of unlawful
gambling devices by Defendants is a public nuisance" that should be
enjoined by the court.
Attorney
General Strange said that he decided
to file the lawsuit after his other efforts to stop the Poarch Tribe's
gambling activities failed and because state officers cannot seize
gambling devices on Indian land. "Unlawful gambling is a statewide
problem, and I have worked with local authorities to
enforce Alabama law consistently and fairly throughout the state,"
Strange said. "I have sent two letters to the National Indian Gaming
Commission, asking them to stop the Poarch Band's unlawful gambling, but
the Commission has refused to do anything about
it. The Commission's inaction has left me with no choice but to file
this lawsuit," Strange said. Attorney General Strange sent letters to
the National Indian Gaming Commission on Feb. 11, 2011, and again on
April 25, 2012, which asked the Commission to take
action against the Poarch Tribe.
Attorney
General Strange noted that the
lawsuit is consistent with other actions he has taken with respect to
Indian gambling. "I have lobbied Congress to stop the expansion of
Indian gambling to new areas, and I have filed a brief in the Alabama
Supreme Court to oppose the Poarch Band's efforts
to use its land for gambling," Strange said. "As I have said many times,
my office will use every tool at its disposal to stop illegal gambling
in Alabama, wherever it is located. This lawsuit against the Poarch Band
is one of those tools."
In 2012, Congress was considering proposed legislation that would have overruled Carcieri
v. Salazar,
555 U.S. 379 (2009), a U.S. Supreme Court decision that limited the
Secretary of Interior's ability to set aside land for Indian tribes to
use for gambling.
Attorney General Strange requested that Alabama's Congressional
delegation oppose the proposed legislation and co-sponsored a letter
from 13 state attorneys general to Congress in opposition to it.
Attorney General Strange also filed a brief in the Alabama
Supreme Court that asked the Court to apply the Carcieri decision to the Poarch
Tribe. The brief was filed in Jerry Rape v. Poarch Band of Creek Indians et
al., No. 1111250 (Alabama Supreme Court).
(Press Release from the office of Attorney General Luther Strange)
(Press Release from the office of Attorney General Luther Strange)
