Posted on 05/31/2002 12:44:46 PM PDT by jern
Judge rejects Legislature's redrawn House-Senate maps
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By SCOTT MOONEYHAM ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
SMITHFIELD, N.C. (AP) -- Superior Court Judge Knox Jenkins rejected the Legislature's redrawn district maps for the state House and Senate on Friday, making his own wholesale changes to the Senate plan.
The maps he approved in his order largely adopted Senate districts advocated by Republicans, who had challenged districts that were drawn last year and approved by the Democrat-controlled Legislature.
He also ordered five changes affecting the House plan revised this month by the Legislature. The most significant change would move Rep. David Redwine, the Democrat in charge of the House budget-writing committee, into a largely Republican district in coastal areas of Brunswick and New Hanover counties.
Jenkins' order offered no explanation for why he rejected the maps, which had been redrawn at the direction of the state Supreme Court.
"I'm fully aware that the judgment I'm about to sign, the order I'm about to sign, will not satisfy either party. That fact might well add some credibility to the order," Jenkins said.
Jenkins' order is the result of a lawsuit brought by Republican lawmakers who claimed Democratic legislative leaders improperly split counties to gain a political advantage.
Last month, the state Supreme Court also sided with the Republicans, finding that the districts approved last year violated a constitutional provision by dividing more counties than necessary. The court ordered lawmakers to redraw the maps, and left it to Jenkins to determine whether they had complied with the order.
"Our map beat their map in every aspect of the law," said Senate Republican leader Patrick Ballantine. "Our map was better than theirs. The Supreme Court called for strict compliance with their order, and we were in strict compliance."
In a hearing last week before Jenkins, lawyers for the state argued that the Legislature met the Supreme Court's requirements by rewriting the maps to split fewer counties.
The redrawn Senate plan contained districts that cross 15 county lines. The House map had districts that cross 43 county borders. The previous Senate plan split 50 counties, while the House map divided 71.
Republican lawyers countered that the districts still were not compact and that Democratic legislators did not follow the grouping criteria set by the Supreme Court.
The case has led to an indefinite delay in primary elections, which had been set for May 7.
Hey blackbag,
I'm just getting back to FR after being away for a few days... I took a vacation day on Monday.
It was GREAT!
I think that the reason that the house plan is still gerrymandered is due to US Dept of Justice rules & the Voting Rights Act.
I heard that Jenkins said that his maps still complied with the districts that the DoJ had previously approved.
CD
Amazing what they will come up with for district zoning.
LVM
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