{"id":320022,"date":"2024-05-15T18:34:37","date_gmt":"2024-05-15T23:34:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=320022"},"modified":"2024-05-16T09:58:50","modified_gmt":"2024-05-16T14:58:50","slug":"minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/","title":{"rendered":"Minnesota\u2019s Running Aces Racino Adds More Casinos to RICO Suit"},"content":{"rendered":"

Minnesota harness racing track Running Aces has added two more casinos to a federal racketeering suit<\/a> that claims tribal operators in the state are running \u201cillegal\u201d games.<\/p>\n

\"Running
Running Aces president and CEO Taro Ito, above, says that all he wants to do is compete on a level playing field. But tribal interests dismissed his lawsuit as a stunt designed to \u201cmislead the public\u201d and \u201cinfluence the legislature.\u201d (Image: The Business Journals)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Last month, the Columbus, Minn.-based racino sued the Grand Casino Hinckley, Grand Casino Mille Lacs, and Treasure Island Resort. Running Aces claims they conduct class III card games that aren’t covered by their tribal-state gaming compacts, such as Three Card Poker and Ultimate Texas Hold\u2019Em.<\/p>\n

The Grand Casinos are owned by the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. Treasure Island belongs to the Prairie Island Indian Community.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In an amended complaint filed Tuesday, Running Aces added Mystic Lake and Little Six Casinos, which are owned by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC).<\/p>\n

\u2018IGRA Violated\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The racino accuses all five casinos of violating the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), as well as state laws, by operating not only class III card games but also \u201cvideo games of chance,\u201d such as slots.<\/p>\n

The tribes are permitted by the state to offer these games under the terms of their compacts. Minnesota was the first state to sign compacts with its federally recognized tribes after the enactment of IGRA in 1988.<\/p>\n

Many believe lawmakers blundered by failing to negotiate revenue-sharing provisions. The state isn’t permitted to renegotiate any of these compacts without the tribes\u2019 approval.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Minnesota criminal code \u201cspecifically prohibits and makes illegal the playing of electronic video games of chance for any person,\u201d as the lawsuit notes.<\/p>\n

This is something the tribes \u201cknow only too well,\u201d per the lawsuit. When Running Aces applied to the Minnesota Racing Commission to \u201cmodestly expand its \u2018dealer assist\u2019 table games,\u201d the SMSC objected on the grounds that \u201cvideo games of chance are not permitted in Minnesota,\u201d the suit states.<\/p>\n

\u2018No Merit\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cAll that we have ever sought was to be treated fairly, compete on a level playing field, take advantage of improvements within the pari-mutuel environment, and operate without fear of being eliminated,\u201d Running Aces president and CEO Taro Ito said in a statement to local CBS affiliate KSTP-TV<\/em>. \u201cIt is our sincere desire to have our day in court and let the facts determine the outcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

The SMSC dismissed the Running Aces lawsuit as having \u201cno merit,\u201d labeling it a \u201cdesperate stunt to attack the good reputation of tribes and tribal gaming\u201d in a statement to FOX 9<\/em>.<\/p>\n

All gaming conducted at Mystic Lake and Little Six Casinos complies with tribal law, federal law, and the gaming compact that was executed in 1989,\u201d read the statement.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The SMSC claims Running Aces is seeking to \u201cmislead the public and influence the final stages of the Minnesota Legislature\u2019s 2024 session,\u201d to prevent the passage of a bill<\/a> that would hand a sports betting monopoly to the tribes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Minnesota harness racing track Running Aces has added two more casinos to a federal racketeering suit that claims tribal operators in the state are running \u201cillegal\u201d games. Last month, the Columbus, Minn.-based racino sued the Grand Casino Hinckley, Grand Casino Mille Lacs, and Treasure Island Resort. Running Aces claims they conduct class III card games […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":320023,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14577,60,18456],"tags":[90913,90912,90911,90909,90914,90910],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMinnesota\u2019s Running Aces Racino Adds More Casinos to RICO Suit<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Running Aces in Columbus, Minnesota expands RICO suit to add Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community casinos.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Minnesota\u2019s Running Aces Racino Adds More Casinos to RICO Suit\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Running Aces in Columbus, Minnesota expands RICO suit to add Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community casinos.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-05-15T23:34:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-16T14:58:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Taro.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1134\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Philip Conneller\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@casinoorgphilc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Philip Conneller\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/\",\"name\":\"Minnesota\u2019s Running Aces Racino Adds More Casinos to RICO Suit\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Taro.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-05-15T23:34:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-05-16T14:58:50+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/58769b72851c8cf117fb58ca150ebf8b\"},\"description\":\"Running Aces in Columbus, Minnesota expands RICO suit to add Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community casinos.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/minnesotas-running-aces-racino-adds-more-casinos-to-rico-suit\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Taro.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Taro.jpg\",\"width\":1134,\"height\":640,\"caption\":\"Running Aces president and CEO Taro Ito, above, says that all he wants to do is compete on a level playing field. 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