Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt plans to rekindle a effectual dustup o'er tribal gambling casino compacts that was presumed dead mid-2020. That’s according to courtyard documents seen past KOSU, a public radio post operated by Oklahoma State University.
Stitt has retained lawyers inward Booker T. Washington DC who have got told US District Margaret Court Judge Timothy Gene Kelly they moot controversial compacts negotiated 'tween the regulator and foursome Oklahoma tribes to be valid. They architectural plan to single file a question to dismiss the case intriguing the agreements, brought past the state’s largest tribal operators.
Stitt signed the compacts inwards 2020 with the breaking away Otoe-Missouria Tribe, Comanche Nation, United Keetoowah Band of the Cherokees, and Kialegee Tribal Town amid a wider squabble over the casino revenue-share payments.
These were controversial because they promised the 4 tribes the compensate to tender sports betting as portion of the young deal, despite the praxis existence illegal inwards Oklahoma.
They also undermined the united breast taken by Oklahoma’s several dozen other tribal operators over the status of the modeling gaming compact, signed inwards 2004.
Stitt argued this thickset was due to expire on January 1, 2020, and that any operator offering stratum III gaming, the likes of slots, blackjack, and craps, after that would follow doing so illegally.
Lawsuits Fly
The regulator wanted to wring more money out of the tribes in revenue-share payments past forcing them to renegotiate their gaming agreements. But the tribes argued that the language of simulation thickset suggested the agreements were due to undulate over and renew on the appointment inwards oppugn and that negotiations were unnecessary.
The tribes filed a federal suit against Stitt. On July 28, 2020, US District Margaret Court Judge Timothy De Guisti agreed with the tribes that the compacts rolling over.
The tribes then filed another federal causa against the Little Joe breakaway compacts, which is the one Stitt’s lawyers testament at present seek to dismiss.
Meanwhile, Republican River legislative leaders sued the regulator in the OK Supreme Court, arguing he lacked the authorization to ratify the quatern compacts without the legislature’s consent.
The Supreme Margaret Court agreed, ruling he had overreached by offering sports betting, which could only live authorised past the legislative body and so past a public referendum.
Emboldened by SCOTUS?
It seemed same the death of the route for Stitt’s stocky strategy, so what changed?
It appears the governor has turn emboldened by a recent US Supreme Court ruling, which held that Sooner State has jurisdiction to pursue crimes committed past non-Native Americans against Native Americans inwards American Indian country, which comprises vast swathes of the state.
In the wake of that groundbreaking decision, the Governor has conducted a critical review of pending judicial proceeding involving Sooner State Tribes and the State,” Stitt’s lawyers wrote. “As a final result of that review, Governor Stitt … at present intends to asseverate the defense force that [the complaint] fails to state a claim upon which sculptural relief tin live granted.”
“…The Governor expects to pretend additional arguments concerning the validness of the compacts at government issue that the parties get non in time full presented. In particular, the Governor will explain wherefore … the underlying compacts are valid as a affair of law,” they added.
Quite what the SCOTUS ruling has to doh with gambling casino compacts is unclear, and tribal lawyers who spoke to KOSU this week appeared mixed-up past the legal reasoning. One, Stephen Greetham, Outside Counsel for Chickasaw Nation, said Stitt was trying to usage the ruling “like a thaumaturgy wand.”
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