The Jamul Indian band has dropped a lawsuit in which it was accusing state officials of meddling with its casino plans.There are several possibilities here. The one that seems most likely to me (but keep in mind that I am not a lawyer, nor do I have full knowledge of the situation) is that the Jamul Indians no longer have the financial resources to pursue this expensive litigation, and they are probably under some pressure from Lakes Entertainment to resolve the situation in such a way that some kind of profitable casino can be built, so...they reached an accommodation with CalTrans.Neither side explained what was behind the joint request to dismiss the lawsuit in San Diego federal court.
A spokesman for the California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, said he couldn't talk about the case until the judge agreed to dismiss it.
Repeated calls to tribal officials and their lawyers were not returned.
However, a lawyer for a group of neighbors opposed to the casino said the tribe agreed to submit its plans to a state environmental review.
So I'm afraid this probably increases the chances of a casino being built...but most likely it would be a casino at a much-reduced scale.
