By Howard Fischer Capitol Media Services/Arizona Capitol Times
A federal appeals court this morning on Tuesday slapped down yet another bid by state officials and other tribes to block the Tohono O’odham Nation from conducting full-blown gaming at its Glendale casino.
In a unanimous ruling, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected arguments that the deal negotiated between the state and the tribe does not permit the Tohono O’odham to operate a casino on land that was not part of its reservation at the time. Justice Carlos Bea, writing for the panel, said it’s irrelevant whether state officials thought — and even contend they and the voters who approved the deal were led to believe — that such gaming was not permitted.
