And now:Sonja Keohane <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: Friday December 11 1:08 AM ET Judge: Indian Slot Machines Illegal SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - A federal judge ruled Thursday that slot machines at tribal casinos are illegal, clearing the way for the government to seize the gambling devices from two eastern Washington Indian reservations. The Spokane Tribe plans to appeal U.S. District Judge Fred Van Sickle's ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, tribal vice chairman John Kieffer said. The judge found the slot machines are illegal under the Johnson Act, a 1950s anti-organized crime law that bans slot machines on Indian reservations. Lawyers for the Spokane Tribe of Indians and the Confederated Colville Tribes had filed a motion seeking to order federal prosecutors to sue Washington state rather than attempt to seize the slot machines. The motion was denied. The ruling allows federal marshals to seize slots from the Spokane and Colville reservations before the outcome of any appeal, assistant U.S. attorney Jim Shively said. As many as 600 people may be laid off at the Spokane tribe's four casinos, which feature a total of about 1,300 slots machines, Kieffer said. ``Without the slots, we'll definitely have to close our doors,'' he said.
