Idaho to pay legal fees in instant horse racing case

The Idaho Supreme Court has ruled that Idaho must pay the Coeur d’Alene Tribe about $57,000 in legal fees in a case involving the legality of lucrative betting machines known as instant horse racing.

The order, issued Wednesday, is just more than half of what the tribe originally requested.

Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter earlier this year vetoed legislation banning historical horse race betting machines.

The Tribe argued Otter didn’t complete the veto in time and the high court agreed.

That meant the legislation could go into effect, forcing horse racing parks to unplug more than 200 of the instant horse racing terminals.

In the most recent ruling, Chief Justice Jim Jones argued that the amount should have been even lower because the case never went to trial.