Dave Palermo reports on the role of the National Indian Gaming Commission in Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Community, an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case:
A 2010 opinion by the federal Indian gambling regulatory agency that it has no jurisdiction over a tiny, Vanderbilt, Mich., casino could lead to a “devastating” U.S. Supreme Court ruling on American Indian sovereignty, tribal legal experts say. The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is urging the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) to reverse a 2010 opinion that it has no jurisdiction in the Bay Mills Indian Community’s efforts to operate a casino on non-trust lands in upstate Michigan. “We’ve asked them to reconsider,” NCAI President Jefferson Keel said Friday. “They said they would look at it [2010 opinion] again.” An NIGC order to close the Vanderbilt casino would likely prevent a pending Supreme Court hearing into a federal lawsuit by the state of Michigan alleging that the gambling hall is operating in violation of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) of 1988. Tribes throughout the country are alarmed at the pending high court ruling. Many question both the merits of Bay Mills’ legal argument and the wisdom of allowing the matter to reach a Supreme Court with a history of anti-Indian rulings.Get the Story:
Dave Palermo: NIGC opinion crucial to Bay Mills case (Pechanga.net 9/15) Relevant Documents:
Supreme Court Order List | Supreme Court Docket Sheet No. 12-515 6th Circuit Decision:
Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Community (August 15, 2012)
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