US court rules Tohono O’odham can have casino in Phoenix area

PHOENIX (AP) – A new court ruling says a southern Arizona tribe’s gambling compact with the state allows the tribe to have a casino in the Phoenix area.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision Tuesday upholds a federal judge’s ruling for the Tohono O’odham Nation in a lawsuit filed by the state and two other Arizona tribes.

The state argued that the 2002 compact implicitly barred the Tohono O’odham from having a Phoenix-area casino, but the 9th Circuit says the compact’s wording doesn’t include a prohibition.

Because of the dispute, the Tohono O’odham opened its new Glendale-area casino last December without some types of gambling.

Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment, including whether Arizona will appeal to the US Supreme Court.