Supreme Court decided (6-3) that neither the state of California nor Riverside County could regulate the bingo and card game operations of the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians and the Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians. The opening of several reservation bingo halls led to court cases between state and tribal interests in Wisconsin, Florida and California California opens the gatesĪfter authorities issued citations to employees and customers and shut down a cards and bingo establishment on a Riverside reservation in 1980, a legal battle went all the way to the Supreme Court. Controversy didn’t swirl around online sports betting or large Las Vegas-style resorts, but it began with small-scale bingo games. The San Diego County sheriff shut it down and the courts agreed with the decision.Ĭasino gaming came to the forefront of Indian matters during the 1980s.
The Rincon Band of Mission Indians, located in San Diego County, made the first attempt to open a tribal casino in California in 1970. With Propositions 26 and 27 both related to tribal gaming, we look at the history of Native Americans and their casinos.
