In El Paso, Texas, a federal judge recently ruled the Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo, or Tigua Tribe, is in violation of state law for offering illegal video bingo games at its Speaking Rock Entertainment Center. U.S. District Judge Philip R. Martinez of the Western District of Texas El Paso Division issued an opinion supporting a motion for a summary judgment and a permanent injunction against “defendants Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, the tribal council and the tribal Governor Michael Silvas.”
Martinez wrote, “The Court is of the opinion that the tribe should be enjoined from continuing its gaming operations at Speaking Rock.” The state claims all gaming activities prohibited by Texas laws also are prohibited on the Tigua reservation under the Restoration Act. But Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo officials said they have a sovereign right to engage in gaming.
Earlier Martinez granted a motion filed by the Texas Attorney General’s office dismissing the tribe’s counter lawsuit claiming the state was violating the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
The Texas Attorney General’s office and the Tiguas have been battling in court over the tribe’s right to have gaming devices on tribal land since 1999. The most recent lawsuit, still pending in federal court, was filed June 7, 2017, by the state Attorney General’s office. At issue is whether the tribe is violating the Restoration Act, a federal agreement between the government and the tribe passed by the U.S. Congress in 1987 and signed by President Ronald Reagan.
The state argued the Tiguas offer electronic bingo slot machines and an unlicensed 24/7 bingo operation at Speaking Rock, in violation of the Texas Penal Code, which prohibits illegal lotteries like games of chance that offer prizes. The Tiguas, however, said the games at Speaking Rock are “permissible forms of bingo” and do not violate any laws. Tribal officials said the games are electronic “bingo card minders,” not illegal slot machines or bingo operations.
The Tiguas also argued the lawsuit should be thrown out since they are protected by the Restoration Act, which they claim does not give jurisdiction to the state to file a civil lawsuit in federal court against the tribe. In addition, the tribe argued in their counterclaim that Texas laws violate the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause “by allowing certain organizations the right to conduct bingo but omitting Indian nations and their members from that list.”
Also the tribe alleged Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has “enforced Texas’s gaming laws in a discriminatory manner.” They said he “has worked for years to stop bingo on the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and has brought litigation against the counter-plaintiffs citing the Restoration Act and Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code solely for the purpose of stopping bingo, while non-Indians are allowed to participate in regulated and unregulated bingo games and game rooms in the State of Texas. Counter-defendant Ken Paxton allows bingo to occur at Fort Bliss, but not at Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, even though both occur on federal lands within the exterior boundaries of the State of Texas.”
Marc Rylander, a spokesman for Paxton, stated, “Our office’s investigation provided proof that the tribe’s activities at Speaking Rock violate Texas gaming laws and regulations. The district court’s ruling upholds federal law, halts the tribe’s illegal activity, and allows Texas to maintain the crucial ability to enforce its laws.”
In their motion to dismiss the counterclaim, state officials said, “The counterclaim lacks merit. The tribe runs a gambling operation that violates multiple provisions of Texas law. No one else in Texas is violating the law the way that the tribe is. There is no evidence of other entities in Texas with a history of continuously refusing to abide by Texas gambling laws. For these reasons, the Tribe has not met its burden of showing that General Paxton is treating similarly situated groups differently.”
A bench trial will be held March 4 to consider the state’s lawsuit requesting a permanent injunction banning gambling activities at the Tigua’s casino.
