In Tulsa, Oklahoma, Northern District Judge Gregory Frizzell heard from attorneys for the Cherokee Nation, United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, Cherokee Nation Entertainment and the U.S. Department of Interior in the ongoing battle over 2.03 acres. The UKB wants the parcel taken into federal trust so it can reopen its only casino. But the Cherokee Nation’s constitution requires it to challenge any tribe that wants to have land taken into trust within the Cherokee’s 14-county jurisdiction.
The Keetoowah Cherokee Casino, originally opened as Keetoowah Bingo in 1986, had 150 employees, including 70 tribal workers. The UKB said allowing the casino to remain closed, as it has been for 11 months, goes against its sovereignty. The Cherokee Nation and its gaming arm, Cherokee Nation Entertainment, said they both would suffer irreparable harm if the Keetoowah casino is not kept closed. CNE attorneys said because the tribe has been the only tribal gaming entity within the Cherokee Nation’s jurisdiction, it has been able to build eight and soon to be nine casinos in the past two decades.
UKB Attorney General Christina Vaughn said, “Both tribes gamed down the street from each other for years and the world didn’t end, your honor.” CNE attorney David Keglovitz said, “The ‘end of the world’ line is a variation of the same argument. They’re just asking for credit for all their years of illegal gaming.”
The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act states tribes only can conduct gaming on trust property within their own jurisdictions or get permission from the tribe in question if attempting to open a casino within another tribe’s borders. In July 2012, then-acting Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Michael Black ruled that the UKB had indeed met the federal requirements for acquiring land into trust, effectively giving the two tribes co-jurisdiction of the Cherokee Nation’s area–eliminating the need for the Cherokee Nation to approve of the casino. Black said the UKB only needed to solicit comments from the Cherokees. McCullough said, “The 2012 decision should be the very definition of arbitrary and capricious, if not the poster child,” attorney David McCullough said on behalf of the Cherokee Nation.
But last summer, Frizzell granted the Cherokee Nation’s requests for a temporary injunction and temporary restraining order to prohibit the property from being taken in trust. Under the terms of a $2 million settlement reached with Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, the tribe had to close the casino since the land was not in trust by the end of August 2013.
Frizzell said he stands by his previous ruling but that does not guarantee he would make the injunction permanent. “It appears that the court may adjust some of its conclusions made at the time of the preliminary injunction hearing. I appreciate having additional time to look at these issues more closely.” The next round of filings will be due September 8.
