Tribes in Oregon going to battle over new casino developments

Monday, November 12, 2012  

Tribes in Oregon were united in their opposition to a non-Indian casino that was rejected at the polls but they aren't on the same side when it comes to their own developments.

The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe spent over $700,000 to battle the non-Indian casino. Now they are turning their sights against the Coquille Tribe, whose leaders want to open a Class II facility at a site off their existing reservation.

"They're a neighboring tribe and we've never had any animosity towards them," Wayne Shammel, the Cow Creek, Band's attorney, told The Wall Street Journal. "But they're going after our livelihood."

The war isn't limited to Oregon. The Grand Ronde Tribes are also fighting the Cowlitz Tribe, just across the border in Washington.

"They belong up there. Our tribe has to protect our interests," Siobhan Taylor, a spokesperson for the Grand Ronde, told the Journal.

Get the Story:
Tribes Clash Over Gambling (The Wall Street Journal 11/10)

Voters in Oregon reject non-Indian gaming project as expected (11/7)