The Gabrielino/Tongva Nation of California doesn't have federal recognition or any land but the tribe is already divided over gaming.
One faction, led by Sam Dunlap, wants a casino. With a $21 million pledge from investors, Dunlap and his Gabrielino-Tongva Tribal Council have been trying to convince state lawmakers to move the idea forward. Another faction, the Gabrielino/Tongva Band of Mission Indians, has been around a little longer. Its leaders say Dunlap and his group are illegitimate. Dunlap appeared to be getting somewhere when an outgoing state lawmaker introduced a bill to authorize a casino without federal recognition. But now he's fighting with Jonathan Stein, the lawyer who brought in the investors. The situation "is just giving legitimate tribes a bad name," Ron Andrade, the director of the Los Angeles City-County Native American Indian Commission, told The Los Angeles Times. "It's just hurting all our image." Get the Story: