Court hearing just a couple of weeks away
Gulfside’s foundation is built on shaky ground. This is part of it….
In a December 19, 2018 email, Asa Hutchinson’s Executive Assistant Carleton Saffa asked Byron Freeland, long time counsel to the Racing Commission, “I’ll be asked if the letter of reference language in the rule on county judge is restrictive to the judge at time of application submission or is broader — any county judge during a time in which the amendment was in effect.”
Freeland replied in an email two days later, “Letter is valid if written after the Amendment became effective. If ARC gets more than one letter of support, the Commission will determine which applicant is the best qualified.”
According to the Administrative Procedures Act: “No agency rule, order,or decision shall be valid or effective against any person or party, nor may it be invoked by the agency for any purpose, until it has been filed and made available for public inspection as required in this subchapter.”
Gulfside’s case is partly built on something that wasn’t even communication from Freeland to Gulfside or any of the potential casino applicants. It was a Racing Commission counsel’s email reply to an email question from an assistant to the governor.