October 27, 2009
The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is confident of its plans for a casino, a spokesperson said, despite hitting a number of setbacks.
The tribe gained federal recognition in May 2007 after a decades-long wait. A couple of months later, residents of the town of Middleboro overwhelmingly voted in favor of a casino and the tribe submitted a land-into-trust application for the gaming site in August 2007.
The tribe's fortunes soon began to unravel. The tribe's former chairman, a strong proponent of the gaming plan, was indicted on fraud and corruption charges and eventually pleaded guilty.
Then came the U.S. Supreme Court
decision in Carcieri
v. Salazar. The decision effectively bars tribes that weren't "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934 from following the land-into-trust process.
The tribe's deal with its casino backers soon came apart amid the downturn in the national economy. Tribal leaders say they are negotiating a new agreement but they have already scaled back plans for a casino resort.
"Since the last time, all the tribe has encountered is problem after problem after problem," Richard Young, a founder of Casinofacts.org and president of CasinoFreeMass told The Cape Cod Times. "I don't see how they can overcome any of the hurdles."
Chairman Cedric Cromwell will tout the tribe's plan at a gaming hearing before the Massachusetts Legislature on Thursday. "We are fully confident that Indian gaming is going to be a reality for our tribe," he told the Times in a statement.
Get the Story:
Tribe loses clout in state casino debate
(The Cape Cod Times 10/27)
Also Today:
Legislature ready to roll the dice on casino? (GateHouse News Service 10/26)
Steve Decosta: Voice of casino opposition has evolved, shifted (South Coast Today 10/26)
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