SEARCH NEWS:

 

Mississippi casino not sure thing

BILOXI, Mississippi -- As reported by the Mississippi Press: "Even if Jackson County leaders indicate a proposed Choctaw casino on Mississippi 57 would not have a negative effect on the local area, leading Indian gaming officials said Wednesday the casino will not be built overnight.

"Before they can build the proposed casino, the Mississippi Band of Choctaws will have to gain approval from two government bodies, the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Mississippi governor's office said Jason Giles, lead attorney with the National Indian Gaming Association.

"Approval from either body is not assured, he said, particularly since the proposed casino is not on land within the original Choctaws' reservation. Giles said there are 34 current petitions for off-reservation gaming before Indian Affairs. Many of these petitions are three or four years old, Giles said.

"In an e-mail statement sent Wednesday, spokesman Chassidy Wilson said Mississippi Choctaws have a strong tie to their Jackson County holdings. "

"...Dan M. McDaniel, a leading authority on gaming law, said the compact signed in the 1980s that allowed the Choctaws to build a casino near Philadelphia will not allow them to build in Jackson County. To build a casino near Ocean Springs, the Choctaws and Mississippi will have to renegotiate the compact..."

< Gaming News