Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge Rejects Casino Ballot Proposal, Once Again

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge Rejects Casino Ballot Proposal, Once Again

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge has rejected still another casino ballot referendum, this time on grounds that the proposed question features ‘ambiguous’ wording.

If gambling proponents in Arkansas wish to put the issue of casinos before voters, they’ll need certainly to better simply their constitutional amendments before submitting them to Attorney General Leslie Rutledge.

It’s the second time in 2010 that their state’s chief appropriate advisor has rejected a motion that is gambling.

Rutledge stated this week that the latest effort can not be effortlessly summarized for voters to comprehend in the small amount of time they spend inside polling booths.

‘It is my viewpoint that quantity of additions or modifications to your ballot title are necessary in order to more completely and correctly summarize your proposition,’ the AG ruled. She added that the relevant concern, as presently worded, would ‘inevitably lead to confusion.’

The proposal came from a committee named ‘Arkansas Wins in 2018.’ The initiative sought to authorize four casinos into the counties of Benton, Boone, Miller, and Pulaski. Tax revenue generated by the gambling facilities would were earmarked for highway improvements.

Arkansas is one of 11 states without full-fledged commercial or tribal casinos. It does, but, allow slot machines and table that is electric at its two parimutuel tracks, Oaklawn Park and Southland Park.

Advocates in a Rut

It had been only January that Leslie Rutledge rejected another demand to ask Arkansans if they want to authorize gambling that is casino-style. Although the two casino ballot referendums both sought to generate highway funding, the individuals supporting the two groups are apparently unrelated.

Proposed by Driving Arkansas ahead, the effort that is previous desired to generate new tax revenue from gambling in order to help fix the state roads. It called for the creation of three casinos.

Rutledge dismissed the motion saying there might be confusion ‘whether the words ‘Highway Funding Amendment’ … fairly represents the feature associated with the proposed constitutional amendment (casinos).’

A year earlier in the day, Rutledge rejected Hot Springs resident Barry Emigh’s casino ballot proposition to be ‘overly long and complicated.’ Emigh has recommended dozens of gambling referendums over the years, all unsuccessfully.

His latest was titled, ‘An amendment to the Arkansas Constitution legalizing gambling to the Fairplay Holdings ballot question committee members.’ Confused? So was Rutledge.

‘Your proposal is wholly bereft of specifics. The first problem has to do with your mention of the Fairplay Holdings,’ the attorney general concluded in her denial.

Referendum Process

Arkansas is one of 26 states enabling residents to propose initiatives and/or referendums laws that are recommending consideration. Citizen initiatives and referendums are to make a ‘direct democracy’ where in fact the single governing power doesn’t rest with the unit that is legislative.

But in Arkansas, the attorney general must first sign off on the proposals and assert that their wording is clear and succinct. He or she is not to involve their own governmental opinions into the approval.

‘The decision to certify or reject a popular name and ballot name is in no way a reflection of my view of this merits of a specific proposal,’ Rutledge declared.

Should she have authorized the casino referendum that is latest, the Arkansas Wins in 2018 committee could have needed to collect 84.958 legitimate signatures to spot the question on the November ballot.

Guidiville Rancheria Tribe Loses 14-Year Battle for Richmond, California Casino

A judge that is federal Thursday permanently quashed a 14-year bid by the by the Guidiville Rancheria Native American tribe to create a $1.2 billion casino on the web site of a former US Navy Depot in Richmond, California.

The Point Molate peninsula, near Richmond, Ca, in which the tribe once dreamed of building a $1.2 billion casino, claiming ancestral ties. The land will now be properly used for a housing development, while its historic wineries will be restored and preserved. (Image: The Center for Land Use Interpretation)

The judge in Oakland officially annihilated the tribe’s casino plan and ruled in 2010 and 2011 that it was not entitled to damages from the city that rejected it.

In 2004, the tribe proposed the construction of a casino at Point Molate, Contra Costa County, near the Richmond-San Rafael bridge. The Navy had closed the depot in 1995 and sold the parcel of land to the City of Richmond for $1, which then sought development ideas for the area.

Even though that its reservation is situated 100 miles to the north, in Ukiah, Mendocino County, the Guidiville Ranchera reported the Point Molate promontory should be transferred to the tribe under the ‘restored lands’ provision for the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The tribe said its ancestors had once inhabited the Bay hundreds of years ago.

‘Reservation Shopping’

In 2006, it spent $2 million planning a report in an effort to prove its historical claim towards the territory.

The report recounted entries in the log of a Spanish ship that landed at the Bay within the 1700s, whose crew had been greeted by Indians using clothes made of tule grass, resembling the ceremonial dress of the Ohlone, from whom the tribe claim lineage. But casino opponents accused the tribe of ‘reservation shopping’ and Contra Costa County invested over $1 million trying to disprove the tribe’s historic claim towards the land.

It quickly changed its tune, however, with regards to was promised a $12 million a revenue-sharing deal year.

The proposition went to a ballot but was rejected by Richmond voters in 2010 then by the City Council the year that is following. But the tribe said it had lost millions pursuing its desire a casino and sued the populous city for $750 million in damages.

Richmond’s Arrange B

Now, because of the litigation officially ended, the city is free to push ahead along with its plan that is alternative for Molate. In the place of a Las Vegas-style casino, 670 residential units will be built in the plot, as the Winehaven District a place of historic winery buildings will be preserved for future generations.

The tribe is eligible for some proceeds from the development that is new the regards to the agreement.

‘We are excited to have ended the litigation making sure that the public planning process can begin, and we can put that land to good use for the benefit of the whole community,’ stated Councilwoman Ada Recinos in a formal statement.

The Richmond area should be very pleased, as they will know are able to create a brand new project that should be more appealing to area residents and voters alike.

Venetian Company Picnic Turns Deadly in Las Vegas, Police Say Act of ‘Workplace Violence’

A Venetian company picnic in a popular Las Vegas park for locals switched as a murder scene on Sunday, after an employee arrived to the event with a handgun and allegedly shot at least two people.

Venetian employee Anthony Wrobel is alleged to have shot and killed a female executive at Sunset Park over the week-end, but the motive is unclear and he remains at large. (Image: Las Vegas Review-Journal/LVMPD)

The Las Vegas Metro Police Department has identified Anthony Wrobel, 42, as the shooting suspect. Law enforcement says he could be 5’9″, approximately 200 pounds, and stays at large.

‘Wrobel is known as ARMED and DANGEROUS,’ Metro Police tweeted Sunday night.

According to authorities, Wrobel revealed up to the company picnic at Sunset Park around 6 pm local time. He approached a table where several executives were sitting and proceeded to open fire.

Witnesses stated they heard gunshots that are several. One woman was killed, and a person had been transported to Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center http://1xbets-giris.top/, where he remains in critical condition.

Police said Wrobel’s car was found at nearby McCarran Overseas Airport, but he has maybe not been situated. Metro didn’t say if they believe the suspect has taken a flight or not.

You aren’t information is asked to contact Metro Police at 702-828-3521 or homicide@lvmpd.com.

Sin City Shootings

Las Vegas has been marred by shootings as of belated, the worst, of course, being the October 1 massacre that killed 58 people.

2017 was the year that is deadliest on record for Las Vegas murders, with 264 shooting deaths. Even with no mass shooting, 206 homicides still would have set a murder record that is new.

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said the murder price increase is because of the city’s growing population. The nevada area that is metropolitan; which includes unincorporated areas of Clark County — has an estimated populace in excess of 2.2 million, with about 633,000 living in the city’s certain boundaries. A recent spate of MS-13 gang murders has put a already uneasy city on high alert.

Workplace Violence

Metro Police said Sunday’s shooting wasn’t random, but a deliberate and targeted attack. The homicide victim is reportedly a female inside her 50s, and an executive at The Venetian.

Wrobel was reportedly a casino dealer at the Strip resort. Per Heavy.com, he additionally filed for bankruptcy this season, declaring more than $300,000 in debts while earning roughly $2,900 a month.

Police said the victims were seated at a park picnic dining table whenever Wrobel shot and approached them. ‘a picnic was being had by those employees as soon as the suspect arrived on scene,’ the Las Vegas Metro Police Department said in a statement.