Litigation

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe confident of casino land-into-trust

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is confident its land-into-trust application will survive the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar.

The decision restricts the land-into-trust process to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934. The Mashpees didn't gain federal recognition until May 2007.

But in a court filing in a lawsuit to which the tribe is not a party, attorneys say the Interior Department has approved land-into-trust applications for at least three recently recognized tribes.

"The tribe fully expects to have land taken into trust post-Carcieri just as the DOI has done since the Carcieri decision for other tribes not formally recognized as of 1934, and fully expects to game on those lands," the filing states.

Among those cited in the filing is the Cowlitz Tribe of Washington, whose casino application is being litigated in federal court. The Cowlitz gained federal recognition in 2000.

Get the Story:
Tribe intervenes in lawsuit to sink it (The Cape Cod Times 9/25)

1st Circuit Decision:
KG Urban Enterprises v. Patrick (August 2, 2012)

District Court Decision:
KG Urban Enterprises v. Patrick (February 16, 2012)