I attended the Cleveland County Commissioner’s Meeting last night and signed up to speak under Citizens Recognition, with the Casino “mailer” in hand. I showed the Commissioners the mailer and suggested to them that they do an investigation into it as it accused the Commissioners and County Attorney Tim Moore of “stinky” business. Considering that it has become a well-known fact that Tim Moore, the County Attorney, also represented the Catawba Indians regarding their casino and former Commissioner Eddie Holbrook was apparently cooking up stinky deals to benefit himself while he was in office. Perhaps criminal stinky deals. And since ALL the Commissioners seem to be falling all over themselves to give the Catawba Casino everything they want, with a big mile, that perhaps their palms may have been greased too. The Commissioners did not say a word.
But. The fact remains that the whole Catawba Indian Casino Project certainly seems to have been a “Stinky” deal from start to this very day. The Commissioners have ignored every person that has attempt4ed to dissuade them approving the Casino project. The Commissioners have refused to seek a referendum from the citizens of Cleveland County to judge their approval or opposition to the Casino Project. The Commissioners have ignored the fact that video poker machines that pay off have been illegal in North Carolina and Cleveland County for many years. The Commissioners have always joined in with Commissioner Eddie Holbrook’s “stinky” schemes, from the American Legion World Series, Baseball, Inc. to the secret sale of the Cleveland County Healthcare facilities for less than pennies on the dollar. Costing Cleveland County citizens Millions and even Billions of Dollars in the process.
Also, the City of Kings Mountain’s leaders have made an abrupt about-face from totally against gambling to totally FOR gambling. It certainly seems like the Commissioners and the Kings Mountain City Counsel have been bought off by the lure of easy money for themselves and “to Hell” with everybody else.
Below is a transcribed copy of an old article from the Shelby Star (August 1, 2002) reporting Kings Mountain’s former opposition to video poker gambling as well as a number of articles that indicate the Commissioners and the KM City Counsel have sold out to bad company. Decide for yourselves whether you believe the Commissioners and the KM City Counsel are honest or just two-bit crooks selling out to bigger money?
8/1/02
Kings Mountain won’t fold on poker suits
Cassie Tarpley
Star Staff Writer
KINGS MOUNTAIN — The two-year-old fight over video poker in Kings Mountain is heating up at the same time the N.C. General Assembly seems to be moving toward banning the games altogether.When South Carolina banned video gaming machines effective July 1, 2000, North Carolina legislators quickly passed a law restricting them in this state.
Later that month, Kings Mountain City Council passed an even stricter ordinance, effectively banning video poker machines in the city.
Neither new measure included any “grandfathering” provision, which would have allowed operators of existing machines that did not meet the new requirements to continue in business.
In September 2000, two owners, Mike Heath and Don Johnson, sued the city, asking the courts to prevent enforcement of the new ordinance. Eight months later, a Cleveland County judge denied the injunction request, which is now in the N.C. Court of Appeals.
In the meantime, after a January 2001 deadline for compliance, Kings Mountain officials said business owners could apply for conditional use permits to try to qualify for continued operation.
Only two of 23 businesses received the permit.
The city began enforcing the ordinance, cracking down with building codes and levying fines. Few business owners paid them.
On June 25, 2002, the city filed 17 civil lawsuits against those owners who have not paid the fines, asking the courts to order them to pay.
But on July 12, 2002, U.S. District Judge Lacy Thornburg’s July 12 ruling that part of video poker laws passed in 2000 are unconstitutional.
The state law requires that gaming machines must have been “lawfully in operation, and available for play, within the state on or before June 30, 2000,” but had to be registered for tax purposes by Jan. 31, 2000.
Thornburg’s decision, in the case of a Rutherford County owner, said that setting one date for lawful operation and another date for tax registration was inconsistent, according to Shelby attorney Rob Deaton, who represents two clients who own several of the businesses sued by the city.
Since Thornburg’s ruling, some attorneys of the defendants contacted Kings Mountain City Attorney Mickey Corry about resolving the lawsuits, Corry said.
“They wanted to speak to us about resolving the lawsuits without going to court,” he said.
In a short closed session at Tuesday’s City Council, council members instructed Corry to press on with the suits, Mayor Rick Murphrey said afterward.
“Mickey came to us for guidance, and we want these machines removed. The city feels our ordinance is constitutional,” Murphrey said. “The city attorney is going to proceed with the lawsuits.”
Attorney Mark Hullender, who represents William Parker of Parker’s Amoco, said, “I guess that shows they are not willing to negotiate, and I thought that was the whole purpose of the meeting behind closed doors.”
Hullender said he believes the Thornburg ruling makes a difference for Kings Mountain.
“I think his ruling does affect what is going on,” he said. “It deals with the date restriction.”
Hullender said his client’s position differs from some others.
“He had his poker machines in 15 years before anybody else had a second thought about them and before the ordinance was passed. The city is trying to exclude something he had been operating legally for 15 years,” he said.
“To my knowledge, he had never been arrested or even under suspicion of paying out illegally.”
Deaton, who represents Heath, Johnson, Danny Goforth and Dennis Goins in the civil suits, said that Thornburg’s ruling could have a bearing on Kings Mountain’s law, “But in this case, it doesn’t matter whether it’s constitutional or unconstitutional.”
Deaton said his clients have a right to continue the use of video gaming machines that were operating before the laws were changed.
“These defendants are going to contend that they have a vested right to the continued lawful use of video machines,” he said. “Once you have a lawful use of your property, the city can’t come along and ‘back-zone’ you.
“I’ve always said they ought to make video gaming machines illegal across the board, or tax them heavily so that the state could raise money and the local sheriffs could receive some of the money to offset the cost of enforcing the law.”
Heath and Johnson own nine of the 17 stores named in the recent lawsuits by the city.
Charlotte attorney Ken Davies represents the two in their August 2000 lawsuit against the city asking an injunction to prevent enforcement of the city’s new restrictions.
That suit, still pending in the N.C. Court of Appeals, says the businesses that were operating before Kings Mountain’s law passed should be “grandfathered” and challenges that law, Davies said.
In May 2001, Judge Jesse Caldwell refused to issue an injunction and it was appealed, Davies said.
“We are waiting on the appeals court to rule,” Davies said.
He said he anticipates a decision within a few months.
“The appeals court sets its own schedule,” he said. “The earliest it could come would be Aug. 6, their next scheduled day for handing down decisions.”
Other related Reports:
Catawba casino developer has long ties to video poker industry
Developer looks to build a community near Kings Mountain casino