Friday, May 30, 2003 | 9:55 a.m.
IOWA CITY, Iowa -- A federal appeals court on Thursday rejected a request to immediately reopen the Meskwaki casino in Tama.
A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis also appointed a federal mediator and directed both sides battling for control of the tribe and casino to cooperate in settlement talks.
The decision is the latest setback for tribal leaders hoping to reverse a casino closure order issued earlier this month by the National Indian Gaming Commission.
The casino, which generates $3 million a week and employs 1,300, was closed May 23 when U.S. District Judge Linda Reade issued a ruling enforcing the order. The agency reacted weeks after the tribe's elected council was overthrown by a new group of leaders hand-picked by the tribe's hereditary chief.
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