GRAND RAPIDS, MI (AP)-- A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit seeking to block a Michigan Indian tribe from seeking federal approval for proposed gambling facilities in Lansing and near Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians wants to build a casino near downtown Lansing and another project Wayne County's Huron Township.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert Jonker on Wednesday dismissed the complaint filed by the state, which opposes the projects and is reviewing the ruling.
Sault Tribe Chairman Aaron Payment says in a statement that the ruling indicates the tribe "is within our rights to pursue the casinos, which will create thousands of good jobs."
A federal appeals court ruled in 2013 that the Upper Peninsula tribe could move ahead with plans to build the Lansing casino.
