Exam 6: Native American Gaming

Correct Answer:

Verified

Although the outcome in the 18^th century was a humanitarian tragedy, a series of lawsuits grounded in the concept of sovereign nation status and decided by the Supreme Court in the 20^th century led to the passage of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). IGRA introduced Native American gaming on a wide scale, a much more beneficial outcome. The first lawsuit was Bryan vs. Itasca County that was decided in 1975. The ruling held that a county as a subsection of a state had no authority on an Indian reservation. The second lawsuit was Butterworth vs. Seminole Nation in 1979. This lawsuit turned on the issue of whether the state of Florida had jurisdiction on the Seminole reservation. The ruling reaffirmed the sovereignty of tribes and that a state had no jurisdiction on Indian land. For example, this meant that state police could not enter a reservation without a working agreement with the tribe. In addition, any economic activity on the reservation was not taxable by the state.Finally, in February of 1987 California vs. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians specifically ruled that a state could not prohibit gaming activity on an Indian reservation if the gaming activity was allowed for any purpose to anyone in the state. Like other tribes across the country, the Cabazon Band ran a high stakes bingo game and poker room. Like the Indian casinos in the future except on a smaller scale, the operation provided jobs for tribal members and funding for tribal government.However, California argued that the bingo game and poker room violated state law and that the state had the right to prohibit activities on the reservation, which were considered criminal by state statute. They based this right on a 1953 law passed by Congress giving states a right to criminal jurisdiction over tribes within their borders.This jurisdiction was not absolute, but opened the door for states to interfere in the functioning of tribes on reservations.The tribe argued that they were a sovereign nation as defined by the Constitution and according to case law. As such, their relationship was with the federal government and the state had no right to interfere in activities conducted on tribal lands. In addition, they pointed out that California had relaxed its laws in recent years and allowed various forms of gambling including casino nights for charities. The state even ran a lottery that placed it squarely in the gambling business.