Casino foes refile lawsuit.Byline: Winston Ross The Register-Guard Undaunted by this week's ground-breaking of the Three Rivers Three Rivers, Que., Canada: see Trois Rivières. Casino, the project's opponents on Wednesday refiled their lawsuit against the state, this time in Lane County Circuit Court. People Against a Casino Town argues in the lawsuit that a casino in Florence is illegal because it defies a provision in the state constitution that forbids the Legislature from allowing casinos in Oregon. Last week, the Oregon Supreme Court The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States. rejected PACT's attempt to take its case directly to the state Supreme Court, bypassing the normal route - which begins at the county level. "Now we have to do the same action the long way," said Brad Litchfield, a PACT attorney. The constitution was amended by initiative in 1984 to read: "The legislative assembly has no power to authorize To empower another with the legal right to perform an action. The Constitution authorizes Congress to regulate interstate commerce. authorize v. to officially empower someone to act. (See: authority) , and shall prohibit, casinos from operation in the State of Oregon." Thus, the PACT leaders say, then-Gov. John Kitzhaber John Albert Kitzhaber (born March 5 1947 in Colfax, Washington) is a physician, member of the Democratic Party and former two term Governor of Oregon. He graduated from South Eugene High School in 1965, Dartmouth College in 1969, and then Oregon Health & Science University with a had no authority to sign a gaming compact with the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians, and Gov. Ted Kulongoski Theodore R. "Ted" Kulongoski (born November 5 1940, in rural Missouri[1]) is an American Democratic politician. Since 2003, he has served as the Governor of Oregon. He was re-elected in 2006. doesn't have the authority to carry it out. PACT is PACT I - An early system on the IBM 701. Version PACT IA was for the IBM 704. [Listed in CACM 2(5):16 (May 1959)]. asking the court to void the compact. Litchfield stressed that the group has no intention of trying to shut down other casinos operating in the state. "This lawsuit truly is about the Florence casino," he said. The tribes declined comment Wednesday. They aren't named as a party in the lawsuit. Kevin Neely, a spokesman for the state Attorney General's Office, said the state is preparing its response to the suit. "We believe the governor's compacting authority under Oregon law is legally sound, and we're going to defend the state's position," Neely said. "This lawsuit is not a surprise to the state. We have been looking closely at this issue now for a number of months." |
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