Tribe to California After E-Bingo Lawsuit: We're Sovereign, Bring It On

​The Native American tribe​ facing a lawsuit from the State of California over a bingo gambling website is not taking the legal action sitting down. Monday, the Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel issued a response via their lawyer, former state lieutenant governor Cruz Bustamante, saying they're looking forward to the fight.

"The [lawsuit] lacks both substance and merit and attacks tribal sovereignty. We look forward to having the opportunity to demonstrate the legality, regulatory veracity and consumer safety of the Tribe's bingo enterprise," the statement reads.

Last week, the State of California filed a lawsuit against the Iipay for operating ​DesertRoseBingo.com, a bingo gambling site. The State says the website violates gambling laws, while the Iipay say it doesn't because the servers for the site are on tribe land.

This is the first time a Native American tribe has pushed the boundaries of the law by launching an online gambling site. Where Native American gambling laws intersect with online gambling prohibitions has never been tested, so the results of the case will be precedent-setting not just for Native Americans but also for those​ who want to loosen internet gambling restrictions.

The tribe's statement frames the state's actions as an attack on the sovereignty of not just the Iipay but of all California tribes, many of which will be renegotiating agreements with the state set to expire in 2020.

It goes on to highlight Native American gambling guidelines established in the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and a Supreme Court decision that solidified Californian tribe's rights to run gambling facilities.

The Iipay say the state's actions aren't just about bingo.

"It is a thinly veiled attempt to weaken tribal governments as the State prepares to negotiate compacts with many of the California Tribes," the statement reads.

"This action by the State should be of great concern to all Tribes in California and elsewhere because it reflects a tactic that if successful would set a dangerous legal precedent that could be used in other jurisdictions to undermine and attack tribal sovereignty."

I sent a copy of the tribe's statement to the California Attorney General's office, but they have yet to respond. A case is scheduled in a district court next Thursday, December 4.