By JAMES FINK
Business First

Both sides in the contentious lawsuit over the operation of Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino are calling a Tuesday federal-court ruling a split decision.

U.S. District Court Western District of New York Chief Judge Hon. William Skretny dismissed two secondary claims sought by Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie and 22 other plaintiffs against Philip Hogen, National Indian Gaming Commission chairman, the NIGC, Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and President Obama.

The issue of whether the downtown-Buffalo casino is operating outside the bounds of a federal ruling is yet to be decided.

Skretny also dismissed a motion by Seneca Nation of Indians, which wanted to join the defendants in the action. The Senecas were instead granted amicus or friend-of-the-court status by Skretny.

"Having them as friend of the court actually helps our case," said Cornelius Murray, the Albany attorney representing Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie County. "To that extent, we are pleased."

Murray said Skretny's dismissal of parts of the organization's lawsuit is not a fatal blow to its case.

"It is far from being a major hit," Murray said. "The major part of our suit remains intact."

At issue is whether the July 2007 federal approval that allowed Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino to open in downtown Buffalo was valid. The Seneca Nation of Indians, in a 2002 compact with New York state, received approval to open three Western New York casinos on sovereign territory. The Senecas, through their Seneca Gaming Corp. arm, opened Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel in Niagara Falls late 2002 and Seneca Allegany Casino & Hotel in Cattaraugus County two years later.

Only the operation of Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino is at issue in the lawsuit.

Skretny in July 2008 ruled that the nine-acre parcel along South Park Avenue in Buffalo was sovereign territory, but he said the federal decision to allow gaming to take place was "arbitrary and capricious."

The Seneca Nation of Indians acquired the property in 2005.

Gaming continues at the venue, with Seneca Gaming having recently expanded the operation to 455 slot machines. More than 541,000 people visited the casino last year, a 28 percent increase from 2008.

Buffalo attorney Carol Heckman, who represents the Seneca Nation of Indians in its request to intervene in the case, said she expects to appeal Skretny's ruling.

"It's a technical point, but it is important to the Nation," said Heckman, a former federal magistrate.

As a friend of the court, the Seneca Nation can observe the case but does not have the legal authority to intervene. "The casino sits on sovereign territory, and the Senecas have a direct interest in the outcome in the course of this case," Heckman said.

The federal government has yet to respond to the ruling. Murray said his clients will make a subsequent motion for summary judgment, all of which will lead the case back to Skretny's courtroom, presumably later this year.

"We're going to push as hard and as fast as we can," Murray said.