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Stop the Casino 101 Coalition
The Voice of the
People
June 30, 2012|
The Impact of
Patchak on the Graton Rancheria Casino Lawsuits
On June 19, 2012, Fitch, a
financial analysis firm, correctly asserted in a press release that the Graton
Rancheria casino project in California could be impacted by the Supreme Court's
decision in the Patchak case.
On June 20, 2012, Fitch released
a claimed correction (they probably got a call from Station Casinos) and
asserted that the Department of Interior's (DOI) land-into-trust approval for
Graton Rancheria was authorized by Congress in the Omnibus Indian Advancement
Act of 2000, and that puts the case outside the scope of the Patchak
decision.
Fitch's correction reflects
confusion on the significance of the Patchak case, and in fact contains
the error.
While the underlying claim in the
Patchak case is different from the underlying claims against the Graton
casino, the Supreme Court decision this week does not concern the underlying
claim but rather concerns procedural issues that arise in both cases.
In Patchak, the
plaintiff challenged DOI's decision to accept title to land in Michigan in trust
for the tribe, pursuant to its authority under the Indian Reorganization Act of
1934.
In Carcieri the Supreme
Court had decided that the IRA allowed DOI to take land into trust only for
tribes which exited in 1934, and Patchak asserts that the Gun Lake
tribe did not exist in 1934.
[This is the same for both the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Aquinnah Tribe in Massachusetts.]
The Federal government asserted
two procedural impediments as precluding review of the case on the merits. The
government asserted that the Federal government had sovereign immunity under the
Quiet Title Act, and that in any event, the plaintiffs lacked prudential
standing because the IRA was not passed to protect their interests.
The government commonly asserts
these defenses in all cases challenging approvals for Indian casinos, whether
concerning taking land into trust, approving management contracts or compacts,
or making Indian land determinations.
In Patchak, the Supreme
Court ruled on the procedural issues and ruled that the lower courts should
consider the case on its merits.
The current litigation, Stop
the Casino 101 Coalition v. Brown against the Governor's Graton Rancheria
gaming compact, was brought in state court and challenges the ratification of
the state gambling compact between Graton Rancheria and the state pursuant to
Article IV, Section 19 of the California Constitution. That provision allows
the state to enter into compacts with tribes for the operation of casino games
on Indian lands in California.
Plaintiffs challenge that the
subject land is owned by the Graton Indians but that they have no sovereignty
over the land. If the compact is approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
Secretary Donald Laverdure or allowed to go into effect, a second suit in
federal court would follow under the same theory.
Prior to the Patchak
decision, it would have been expected that the government and the tribe would
assert that the same defenses considered in the Patchak case. Now
assertion of those defenses have been precluded by the Supreme Court. Things
have gotten easier, thanks to Patchak.
STC101 was one of 25 California community groups that filed a joint amicus curiae brief in the Patchak case. |
| Rohnert
Park's Stinky Deal with the Casino
Yes, the attorneys are already looking
into things
Residents of Rohnert Park oppose the casino 4 to 1, but that's never
stopped their city council from going boldly forth.
People want to know what's being done about the sewer agreement with the casino. Not to worry: our attorneys are already looking into it. Our goal? No sewer agreement with the casino! The city council was so spooked by the thought of a new lawsuit, they actually went behind closed doors to vote at last Tuesday's meeeting! But that shouldn't surprise any long-time Rohnert Park residents: their city council has always liked to operate behind closed doors, in the back rooms, and on the Q-T. Remember this at election time....  |
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