The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1901-09-21
KNOCKED OUT!
Supreme Court Declares the
Redistricting Law
Void.
LEGISLATURE SCORED
Scathing Rebuke Given Re-
publicans by Justice
Van Syckel.
Especial to "The Jersey city News."l

Especial to ''Ine Jersey lily news. j
TRENTON, Sept. 21, 1S0l-The Republi-
can Legislature of last winter came in
for a scathing rebuke at the hands of the
Supreme Court yesterday in an opinion
filed by Justice Van Syckel setting aside
as unconstitutional the redistricting act
by which it was sought to gerrymander
the cities of Elizabeth and Paterson, and
incidentally any other cities whose wards
wer not arranged according to the liking
of the Republicans.
The court characterizes the legislation
unqualifiedly as pernicious and as di-
rect. effort on the part of the legislature
to circumvent the constitutional inhibition
against local and special legislation and
the regulation of municipal affairs by a
commission.
The act in question provided that upon
a petition of not less than 100 voters of a
city the governor might appoint, at his
discretion, commission of three, to di-
vide the city for which they are appoint
ed into wards to contain as nearly as
practicable an equal number of inhabit-
ants.
The suit was up before Justices Van
Syckel, Fort and Garretson on Monday on
writ Of certiorari, in the suits of Gill
hooIy ct ais. v. The City of Elizabeth,
and Hopper ct ais. v. The City of Pat
erson.
The attorneys who appeared before the
court at that time were Lindabury, De-
pue & Faulks, for the prosecution, and
Hon John w. Griggs, Eugene Emley,
William L. Lewis and Frank Bergen for
the defendants.
I'M, fha 10 CT
tutional and therefore, the suits brought
under the law were thrown out. The
syllabus read as follows:-
1.-THE act of March 81 1901, which gives
the Governor power, in his discretion, on
the application of 100 voters, to appoint
commission !. to district or redistrict
wards in the cities of this State is un-
constitutional and void.
81. 1t is an unlawful delegation of
| legislative power.
80 The act is local and special.
SO. 1t authorizes the regulation of muni-
cipal affairs by commission"
The opinion handed down by Justice
Van Syckel after referring to the title
of the case, read as follows
.The only question involved in these
cases, which it is necessary to discuss, is
whether an act approved March q, 1901
| is constitutional.
1.-THE first section of the act reads as
follows:-
g Uuon the petition of not less than 10,
voters of any city the Governor may, III
( his discretion, appoint a committee OF
three residents and voters of such city,
! not more than two of whom shall belong
to the same political party, to divide the
city for which they are appointed into
/ wards, each ward to contain as nearly as
practicable an equal number of inhabi-
4 tants and consistent of convenient and
contiguous territory in compact form,
such division not to take place oftener
+ than once in five years
'1The validity of this legislation is as
| sailed on the ground that it violates the
1 clause of the State constitution, whicn
rests legislative power IN Senate and
/ General Assembly and also the clause
which divides the powers of government
4 into three distinctive departments-tne
/ legislative, executive and judicial-and
| forbids that any person belonging to OF
| constituting one Of the departments sha'
| exercis any OF the powers properly be-
| longing to either Of the others.
1--WE deem it to be the est tablished rule
| that the districting of a city into wards
is a legislative act which cannot be dele
| gated In re Ridgefield Park, 25 w. 2S3
1 State V. Simons, 80 MINI. $40.
..That the law commits to the Governo-
| the determination of an important ques-
tion Of public policy controlling the locai
government of cities does not admit ol
/ controversy, as he Is given an absolute
1 and unlimited discretion controlled by &c