MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Attorney General Luther Strange filed a lawsuit Tuesday morning aimed at shutting down three casinos owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians.
Citing state laws that prohibit slot machine gaming, Strange filed the suit in the Elmore County Circuit Court against the Poarch Band of Creek Indians’ gaming authority and the individual members of the gaming authority and tribal council in their official capacity. The Poarch Band of Creek Indians is not specifically named as a defendant.
“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.”
The casinos are operated on trust property, which means state officials can not serve warrants or seize the machines. However, Strange contends in his lawsuit that the Atmore, Ala., tribe still has an obligation to comply with state gaming laws.
Strange has also filed a brief with the Alabama Supreme Court, asking it to apply the terms of the 2009 Carcieri v. Salazar Supreme Court decision to the Poarch Band of Creek Indians’ gaming facility. Under the terms of that decision, the Secretary of the Interior’s ability to place land into trust for tribal gaming is restricted to tribes who had federal recognition when the Indian Reorganization Act was passed in 1934. Alabama’s only federally recognized tribe, the Poarch Band of Creek Indians did not receive that status until 1984.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Poarch Band of Creek Indians denied Strange’s jurisdictional claims over its three casinos.
"While we respect Mr. Strange’s attempts to fulfill his duties as state Attorney General, he is not a federal official and therefore, has no jurisdiction or enforcement authority over tribal land or tribal gaming operations," the statement read. "While Mr. Strange may target Victory Land and any other gaming facility in the state, this lawsuit against Poarch filed in Circuit Court is yet another example of Mr. Strange refusing to recognize the sovereignty of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians."
A $246 million expansion project at the tribe’s Wetumpka, Ala., property has come under fire from the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and traditional Poarch Band members for its potential desecration of Hickory Ground, a pre-removal burial ground and sacred site. A federal lawsuit to stop the construction is currently pending in the Middle District Court of Alabama.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Attorney General Luther Strange filed a lawsuit Tuesday morning aimed at shutting down three casinos owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians.
Citing state laws that prohibit slot machine gaming, Strange filed the suit in the Elmore County Circuit Court against the Poarch Band of Creek Indians’ gaming authority and the individual members of the gaming authority and tribal council in their official capacity.
“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.”
The casinos are operated on trust property, which means state officials cannot serve warrants or seize the machines. However, Strange contends in his lawsuit that the Atmore, Ala., tribe still has an obligation to comply with state gaming laws.
A $246 million expansion project at the tribe’s Wetumpka, Ala., property has come under fire from the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and traditional Poarch Band members for its potential desecration of Hickory Ground, a pre-removal burial ground and sacred site. Four men were arrested at the site Friday afternoon for attempting to pray for their ancestors and one, Wayland Gray, is facing a felony charge for allegedly making a terrorist threat as he was being arrested. He is currently being held in the Elmore County, Ala., jail on a $30,000 cash-only bond.
Muscogee (Creek) Nation Principal Chief George Tiger has called a 3 p.m. press conference at the federal courthouse to address Friday’s arrests.