Indian Gaming > DOJ seeks dismissal of lawsuit over Ponca casino

July 25, 2008

DOJ seeks dismissal of lawsuit over Ponca casino

The Department of Justice is asking a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit over the Ponca Tribe's proposed casino.

Government lawyers say the state of Nebraska lacks standing to challenge the casino because the tribe's gaming site is in Iowa. Lawyers also say the National Indian Gaming Commission correctly concluded in a December 31, 2007, decision that the tribe can open a casino on land taken into trust after 1988.

The tribe plans to build a casino in Carter Lake, Iowa. Due to shifts in the Missouri River, Carter Lake is surrounded by Nebraska, where Class III gaming is not legal.

The tribe promised not to use a 5-acre site in Carter Lake for gaming but changed its mind. The NIGC said the tribe, which was restored to recognition by Congress, meets an exception in Section 20 of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

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Toss out Nebraska's casino suit, feds argue (The Omaha World-Herald 7/25)