Amador residents lose Indian casino challenge
By Peter Hecht, Sacramento Bee
A federal appeals court on Jan. 29 rebuffed an Amador County citizens group challenging federal recognition of a tribe seeking to build a casino near Ione.
In a nine-page memorandum, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling affirming that the Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians is a federally recognized tribe.
The citizens group is trying to stop the small tribe from building a casino with 950 slot machines and 20 table games on a 67.5-acre parcel near Ione.
