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Constitution prohibits casinos, AG says Friday, Oct 3, 2008 By Rob Moritz Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Attorney General Dustin McDaniel said Thursday his office will fully defend Lt. Gov. Bill Halter's proposed amendment to create a state lottery to fund college scholarships, though he disagrees with lottery supporters who say the state constitution does not ban casinos. Last month, responding to a lawsuit aimed at knocking the lottery proposal off of the November election ballot, members of the pro-lottery Hope for Arkansas campaign argued the constitution bans lotteries, not casinos, and called the argument by lottery opponents that legalizing a lottery would open the door to casinos a "red herring." The state Supreme Court has set oral arguments in the case for Oct. 13. On Thursday, McDaniel took exception to the suggestion that casino gambling is prohibited by state statute, not by the constitution. "I do not believe that the constitution currently permits casino gambling in Arkansas," McDaniel said. "I disagree with that position taken by the lieutenant governor's counsel." Halter's argument in papers filed to intervene in the legal challenge to his proposed constitutional amendment surprised many, and John DiPippa, who teaches constitutional law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, said traditional Arkansas courts have understood the constitution to prohibit all gambling. Jerry Cox, spokesman for the Family Council Action Committee, which filed suit to oust Halter's proposal from the ballot, also said he was surprised by the argument and believed that it was the constitution that has kept casinos out of the state. McDaniel said Thursday while he differs with Halter on whether gambling is prohibited in the constitution, his office stands behind the legality of the proposed lottery amendment. "It's also very important to know that I intend to vigorously, vigorously defend this ... constitutional amendment that is on the ballot at this time," said McDaniel, whose office certified the measure's popular name and ballot title. "It's worth noting that the opinion given to Hope for Arkansas that approved the ballot title and popular name was written by Elana Wills, who now sits on Arkansas Supreme Court," McDaniel said. The original proposal "did contain some concerns that we had at the time, but we would not have approved it had we not believed that we could defend it," the attorney general said. "Anyone that's concerned that we will not give it full due diligence attention is mistaken," he said. Early voting for the Nov. 4 election starts Oct. 20, just one week after the court is scheduled to hear the oral arguments. Some of the state's 75 counties have already printed ballots and others are in the process of printing them, a spokesman for the secretary of state said, adding that if court kicked the proposed lottery amendment off the ballot, it would likely order that votes on the measure not be counted. |
