U.S. Supreme Court to hear Michigan tribal casino case

JusticeDetroit Free Press – The U.S. Supreme Court plans to hear arguments in December on what power, if any, the state has to shut down an American Indian casino in northern Michigan.

The case could have implications for other tribal casino projects in Michigan. Arguments are Dec. 2. The court earlier agreed to consider the case.

The Bay Mills Indian Community opened a casino in 2010 in Vanderbilt in the northern Lower Peninsula, about 90 miles south of its Upper Peninsula reservation. Michigan argues that the tribe opened the casino without permission from the U.S. government and in violation of a state compact.

A federal judge in 2011 ordered the casino and its 84 slot machines closed. In 2012, a federal appeals court ruled the district court had no jurisdiction to shut the casino.

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