Turtle Talk

Here are the materials in Flandreau Sioux v. South Dakota, out of the District of South Dakota.

flandreau-v-south-dakota-dct-order

south-dakota-motion-to-dismiss

flandreau-response-brief

south-dakota-reply-brief

Here is the tribe’s claim:

The Tribe began operating the Royal River Casino in Flandreau, South Dakota, pursuant to a Tribal State Gaming Compact negotiated with the State in 1990 which permitted 250 slot machines at the Tribe’s casino. Under the last Tribal State Gaming Compact executed on December 27, 1999, the Tribe still could not operate more than 250 slot machines on the reservation. The Tribe seeks to eliminate the limit on the number of slot machines and wants to extend the term of the compact for 20 years. The parties began negotiating a new compact in May of 2005, with negotiation sessions held on six occasions between December 30, 2005, and January 11, 2007. The Tribe brought this action for declaratory and injunctive relief against the State of South Dakota, Governor Michael Rounds, the South Dakota Commission on Gaming, and Attorney General Larry Long (“State”). The Tribe alleges that the State has violated various provisions of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (“IGRA”) by failing to negotiate in good faith with the Tribe for purposes of entering into a Tribal-State compact for conducting class III gaming on the Tribe’s reservation. The Tribe also asserts state and federal equal protection claims, alleging that the defendants give preferential treatment to gaming operators other than the Tribe.