The Cherokee Nation went to court on Tuesday to block the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians from operating a gaming facility.
Both tribes are headquartered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. But the Cherokee Nation claims it is the only one with jurisdiction in the former Cherokee reservation. “The attempt by the BIA to place land into trust for another tribe or band of Indians in our jurisdiction is contrary to law, and we intend to prove that in court,” Attorney General Todd Hembree said in a press release. “The Cherokee Nation will do everything in its power to preserve the integrity of our sovereignty.” The lawsuit was filed after the Bureau of Indian Affairs said it was approving the UKB's land-into-trust application for the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino. The facility just celebrated its 27th anniversary. "The effect of this injunction, if granted, would immediately throw some 300 Keetoowahs out of work," James McMillin, an attorney and spokesman for the UKB, told The Tulsa World. "We trust that the federal court, upon hearing all of the evidence, will decline to issue an injunction and permit the Department of Interior provisionally to take the land into trust." The BIA previously confirmed that the UKB has a right to follow the land-into-trust process. Get the Story: