The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of
Chippewa Indians is waiting on the resolution of a lawsuit before submitting a land-into-trust application for an off-reservation casino in Michigan.
The tribe recently acquired land in downtown Lansing for the Lansing Kewadin Casino.
But a lawsuit filed by Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette stands in the way of placing the site in trust.
'Pending the outcome of the litigation, the tribe will soon apply to the federal government to take the land into trust, clearing the way for the construction of the 125,000-square-foot casino," the tribe said in a press release on Tuesday.
The site was purchased with funds from the Michigan
Indian Land Claims Settlement Act. As a result, the tribe believes the Bureau of Indian Affairs will be
required to place the land in trust.
Turtle Talk has posted documents from the case, Michigan v. Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
Get the Story:
Press Release: Latest on Sault Tribe's efforts to build new casino
(Sault Ste. Marie Tribe 11/13)
Tribe asks federal court to dismiss "meritless" state lawsuit to block Lansing casino
(Michigan Radio 11/13)
Sault Tribe reacts
(The Lansing City Pulse 11/13)
Sault Tribe asks federal judge to dismiss Lansing casino lawsuit
(The Lansing State Journal 11/14)
Related Stories:
Sault Tribe asks court to dismiss
lawsuit against casino project (11/13)