Judge orders Stitt, tribes to mediate dispute over compacts

A federal judge has ordered that Gov. Stitt and Native American tribes to mediate their dispute over the gambling compacts that give tribes the exclusive right to operate casinos in the Oklahoma.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge Timothy D. DeGiusti for the state’s western district on Monday ordered the tribes and the Republican governor to each submit a list of three proposed mediators.

The tribes say their gambling compacts automatically renewed on Jan. 1. But the Republican governor says the compacts expired on that day.

The order says the court will quickly appoint one mediator to facilitate discussions. Both parties welcome the judge’s decision.