But opponents of the Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino can't go into the dealings of Edith Blackwell, an attorney within the DOI Office of the Solicitor, Judge William Skretny said. There's no evidence that she improperly influenced the decision-making process on behalf of her husband, a former DOI attorney who now represents the tribe.
"Plaintiffs have not provided any facts indicating that Blackwell’s participation in rulemaking of general applicability was improperly motivated, resulted in biased decisionmaking, or was specifically related to either Akin Gump or the SNI," Skretny wrote. Blackwell's husband, Michael Rossetti, works at the Akin Gump firm. But Skretny did order DOI to release additional documents related to Solicitor Opinion M-37023, which contributed to federal approval of the casino. Some documents were provided to casino opponents but others were redacted or withheld on the basis of the deliberative process privilege. And Skretny left open the door for opponents to go after Blackwell in the future. "To the extent this additional record disclosure calls into question Blackwell’s participation in any deliberative process, a further motion may be warranted," he said. Blackwell and Rossetti began dating when Rossetti was a counselor to former Interior secretary Gale Norton. Blackwell is a career employee, not a political appointee. Turtle Talk has posted documents from the case, Citizens for a Better Buffalo v. Salazar. Get the Story:Judge finds no conflict on Seneca casino (The Buffalo News 9/1) Relevant Documents:
Solicitor's Opinion: Applicability of 25 U.S.C. § 2719 to Restricted Fee Lands (January 18, 2009) | National Indian Gaming Commission Approval of Seneca Nation Casino (January 20, 2009) Related Stories:
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