Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

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A judge dismissed a lawsuit yesterday that challenged the wording of a ballot measure that would legalize casino gambling in the state. Supreme Court Justice Richard Platkin said the lawsuit was "untimely and lacking in legal merit."

Eric Snyder, a bankruptcy lawyer from Brooklyn, filed the case in state Supreme Court in Albany earlier this month, arguing that the language of the proposal was biased toward the purported benefits of casinos. Snyder said the amendment "constitutes the use of public money to advocate the position of a public institution, in violation of the New York State Constitution."

A Siena College poll seemingly bore out Snyder's claims: respondents were much more favorably inclined toward the measure when read ballot language that touted the cash that casinos might generate for schools and the jobs they could create.

Snyder said he plans to seek an emergency appeal of yesterday's decision with the state's higher courts. Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration supports the measure and has acknowledged consultingwith the Board of Elections on the proposal.

 


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