Washington – A Texas Indian tribe filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday alleging that former lobbyist Jack Abramoff, former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed and their associates engaged in fraud and racketeering to shut down the tribe’s casino.
The Alabama-Coushatta tribe of Livingston, Texas, alleged the defendants defrauded the tribe, the people of Texas and the Legislature to benefit another of Abramoff’s clients – the Louisiana Coushatta tribe – and “line their pockets with money.”
“Ultimately, the defendants’ greed and corruption led to the Alabama-Coushatta tribe permanently shutting its casino.
“The funding for economic programs evaporated, over 300 jobs were lost in Polk County and the Alabama-Coushatta tribe has spent years struggling to recover and revitalize its economy through other means,” the tribe said in its lawsuit, obtained by The Associated Press.
The lawsuit also names Abramoff’s ex-business partner Michael Scanlon, a former aide to former Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas; Neil Volz, a former aide to Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio; and Jon Van Horne, Abramoff’s former colleague at his law and lobbying firm, Greenberg Traurig.
Although the tribe alleges Greenberg Traurig was part of the scheme, it did not name the firm as a defendant. Attorney Fred Petti said the tribe is in settlement discussions with the firm.
The tribe did not specify how much money it is seeking in the lawsuit. Petti said it is asking for the amount of revenue lost since it was forced to close its casino. The casino operated for only nine months and shut down in 2002.
The tribe said Abramoff and others conspired to defeat a 2001 bill that would have let it operate gaming on its reservation.
The tribe alleges Reed’s group called state legislators, sent targeted mailings to voters and ran ads against the bill without revealing their origins, preventing the tribe from fighting back.
