Judge combines lawsuits against casino ballot initiative

A Cole County judge combined the two lawsuits challenging Proposition A, the measure increasing casino taxes and setting a limit on the number of casino licenses available in Missouri, during a hearing Monday in Jefferson City.

The two lawsuits, one filed by Cape Girardeau businessman David Knight and another filed by Ballwin, Mo., casino opponent Edwin McKaskel, seek to block the measure from the Nov. 4 ballot. Knight wants to bring a casino to Cape Girardeau. Casino Watch, an advocacy group opposed to an expanded gambling industry, backs McKaskel's effort because it objects to the proposal's language eliminating the $500 loss limit that has been in effect since Missourians approved casinos in 1992.

Both lawsuits challenge the measure's inclusion of several items related to casinos and the use of the tax money generated by gambling. They contend the measure violates the Missouri Constitution's ban on the inclusion of more than one subject in a single initiative measure.

Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce, who ruled that the ballot language was fairly written in an earlier challenge brought by McKaskel, approved the request from McKaskel's attorney, Audrey McIntosh of Jefferson City, to combine the two cases. She also granted the motion by Knight's attorney, Charles Buckley of Independence, for a new judge in the case.

Knight has joined with state Rep. Raymond Salva, D-Independence, in his lawsuit because Salva represents Sugar Creek, Mo., another community that wants to lure a casino.

Joyce also granted the motion from the Yes on A Coalition to intervene in the case. Yes on A is the campaign committee pushing Proposition A, which proponents argue would increase revenue for schools by up to $130 million.

For updates, check back at semissourian.com or read Wednesday's Southeast Missourian.