Judge won't reconsider ruling on Ponca casino

Monday, January 26, 2009  

A federal judge on Friday rejected a request to reconsider a ruling the blocks a casino for the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska.

The tribe wants to use a five-acre site in Carter Lake, Iowa, for a casino. But Judge Charles Wolle reaffirmed his earlier decision that the land doesn't qualify under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

The land was taken into trust after the 1988 deadline in IGRA. The National Indian Gaming Commission, however, said it could be used for a casino because the Poncas meet the "restored" tribe exception in the law.

Wolle concluded that the NIGC lacked the authority to make that decision because the Interior Department said the land couldn't be used for gaming when it was taken into trust.

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