Town presses Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe about casino bid

Wednesday, May 12, 2010  

Leaders in the town of Middleboro, Massachusetts, haven't heard from the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe since asking about casino plans three weeks ago.

The selectmen plan to send another letter to the tribe. They want to know if the tribe plans to live up to an intergovernmental agreement that calls for hosting a casino in the town.

The tribe reached the agreement in 2007 and started the land-into-trust process in August of that year. But the tribe has changed investors and has reportedly looked at other sites for a casino.

The land-into-trust application also faces questions under the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar, which restricts the land-into-trust process to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934. The Mashpees didn't gain formal recognition until May 2007

Get the Story:
Middleboro selectmen vote to call Wampanoag tribe regarding casino contract (The Brockton Enterprise 5/12)