When Dino Beltran scans a 68-acre vineyard in the heart of Sonoma County, he sees land where his ancestors traded goods with other tribes, long before tourists flocked to the storied California wine region.

For decades a small, landless tribe in Northern California has been on a mission to get land, open a casino and tap into the gaming market enjoyed by so many other tribes that earn millions of dollars annually. The Koi Nation’s chances of owning a Las Vegas-style casino seemed impossible until a federal court ruling in 2019 cleared the way for the tiny tribe to find a financial partner to buy land and place it into a trust to make it eligible for a casino.

In a flurry of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, the Justices’ lack of action on one case is a major victory for the tribal gaming industry. The court left in place an agreement between the Seminole Tribe of Florida and the state of Florida, and left the door open for tribal nations to expand into online gaming, as the commercial gaming industry moves more and more in that direction.

The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians is still adjusting to the concept of owning 301 Capitol Mall, perhaps the highest-profile vacant lot in the entire Sacramento region. While timing hasn't yet been determined, tribal representatives said they plan to develop it in some way, still to be decided.

Amit Patel, the former midlevel finance manager for the Jacksonville Jaguars who pleaded guilty to stealing $22 million from the team, will be sentenced by a federal judge on Tuesday.

For the first time since 2008, federal regulations around gaming agreements between tribal nations and states are getting a refresh. The Department of the Interior says the updated rules give “certainty and clarity” on the criteria it weighs when evaluating those agreements.