Why hasn’t VictoryLand Casino reopened in Macon County, Alabama? The reason, said Tuskegee Mayor Johnny Ford, is state Attorney General Luther Strange and his connection to the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, who operate the WindCreek Casinos in Atmore, Birmingham and Wetumpka.
Ford accused Strange of “conspiring with the Indians” and said the tribe has made “$3 million or some amount” available to Strange for his run for governor. Ford added tribal leaders “are bragging about it, it’s public knowledge and everyone in the small community of Montgomery, Alabama is aware that Luther Strange has met with the tribe.” VictoryLand owner Milton McGregor noted the Poarch Creek Indians are the only beneficiaries of Strange’s actions. Noted Ford, “Strange is now in bed with the same tribe he sued a few months ago.”
In addition, Ford contended Strange has been pressuring vending companies to not provide electronic bingo machines to VictoryLand and to contribute to his gubernatorial campaign. He said Memorandums of Understanding have been drafted between the attorney general’s office and the vending companies.
Ford stated VictoryLand was expected to open after Governor Robert Bentley issued an executive order last November, granting enforcement of anti-gambling laws to local officials and district attorneys instead of Strange’s office. Also, a lower court ruled last year that Strange’s office must return 1,615 electronic machines and $263,105 in cash seized in a 2013 raid, but the attorney general filed an appeal to the Supreme Court. Previously, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the state of Alabama did not have the right to bring a federal claim against the tribe to cease operations of its casinos. Also, the court ruled, operations on tribal land only could be regulated by the federal government and the deadline was long passed to challenge putting the land into trust.
In response to Ford’s accusations, Strange commented, “The only thing that we know for sure is the Poarch Creek Indians contributed $1.5 million to my opponent in the last election. So I don’t pay much attention to political rumors, so I just do my job and follow the law.”
The Poarch Creek Indians have made several contributions to candidates’ campaigns. Because of campaign finance laws, contributions may not be made to any political campaign until one year prior to the primary. So any tribal contributions to Strange’s campaign, if he decides to run, will not be known until June 2017.
