Source: https://www.legalcrystal.com/case/104046/east-carroll-parish-sch-bd-vs-marshall
Timestamp: 2018-06-24 18:56:05
Document Index: 254152978

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 5', '§ 5', '§ 5', '§ 5', '§ 5', '§ 5']

East Carroll Parish Sch Bd Vs Marshall - Citation 104046 - Court Judgment | LegalCrystal
East Carroll Parish Sch. Bd. Vs. Marshall - Court Judgment
LegalCrystal Citation legalcrystal.com/104046
Case Number 424 U.S. 636
Appellant East Carroll Parish Sch. Bd.
east carroll parish sch. bd. v. marshall - 424 u.s. 636 (1976) u.s. supreme court east carroll parish sch. bd. v. marshall, 424 u.s. 636 (1976) east carroll parish school board v. marshall no. 73-861 argued january 21, 1976 decided march 8, 1976 424 u.s. 636 certiorari to the united states court of appeals for the fifth circuit syllabus in adopting a multimember reapportionment plan for a louisiana parish calling for the at-large election of certain parish officials to remedy malapportionment among the parish wards, the district court, in the absence of special circumstances dictating the use of such a multimember arrangement, abused its discretion in not initially ordering a single member reapportionment plan. 485.....
East Carroll Parish Sch. Bd. v. Marshall - 424 U.S. 636 (1976)
U.S. Supreme Court East Carroll Parish Sch. Bd. v. Marshall, 424 U.S. 636 (1976)
denied him the right to cast an effective vote in elections for members of the police jury [ Footnote 1 ] and the school board. See Avery v. Midland County, 390 U. S. 474 (1968). After a hearing the District Court agreed that the wards were unevenly apportioned and adopted a reapportionment plan suggested by the East Carroll police jury calling for the at-large election of members of both the police jury and the school board. [ Footnote 2 ] The 1969 and 1970 elections were held under this plan.
approved the multimember arrangement. The intervenor appealed, [ Footnote 3 ] contending that at-large elections would tend to dilute the black vote in violation of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Over a dissent, a panel of the Court of Appeals affirmed, [ Footnote 4 ] but, on rehearing en banc, the court reversed. [ Footnote 5 ] It found clearly erroneous the District Court's ruling that at-large elections would not diminish the black voting strength of East Carroll Parish. Relying upon White v. Regester, 412 U. S. 755 (1973), it seemingly held that multimember districts were unconstitutional unless their use would afford a minority greater opportunity for political participation or unless the use of single member districts would infringe protected rights.
We granted certiorari, 422 U.S. 1055 (1975), and now affirm the judgment below, but without approval of the constitutional views expressed by the Court of Appeals. [ Footnote 6 ]
See Ashwander v. TVA, 297 U. S. 288 , 297 U. S. 346 -347 (1936) (Brandeis, J., concurring).
The District Court, in adopting the multimember, at-large reapportionment plan, was silent as to the relative merits of a single member arrangement. And the Court of Appeals, inexplicably in our view, declined to consider whether the District Court erred under Connor v. Johnson, 402 U. S. 690 (1971), in endorsing a multimember plan, resting its decision instead upon constitutional grounds. We have frequently reaffirmed the rule that, when United States district courts are put to the task of fashioning reapportionment plans to supplant concededly invalid state legislation, single member districts are to be preferred absent unusual circumstances. Chapman v. Meier, 420 U. S. 1 , 420 U. S. 17 -19 (1975); Mahan v. Howell, 410 U. S. 315 , 410 U. S. 333 (1973); Connor v. Williams, 404 U. S. 549 , 404 U. S. 551 (1972); Connor v. Johnson, supra at 402 U. S. 692 . As the en banc opinion of the Court of Appeals amply demonstrates, no special circumstances here dictate the use of multimember districts. Thus, we hold that, in shaping remedial relief, the District Court abused
The Government has filed an amicus brief, in which it argues that the preclearance procedures of § 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 must be complied with prior to adoption by a federal district court of a reapportionment plan submitted to it on behalf of a local legislative body that is covered by the Act. This issue was not raised by the petitioners, nor did respondent file a cross-petition. In any event, we agree with the Court of Appeals, Zimmer v. McKeithen, 467 F.2d at 1383; Zimmer v. McKeithen, 485 F.2d at 1302 n. 9, that court-ordered plans resulting from equitable jurisdiction over adversary proceedings are not controlled by § 5. Had the East Carroll police jury reapportioned itself on its own authority, clearance under § 5 of the Voting Rights Act would clearly have been required. Connor v. Waller, 421 U. S. 656 (1975). However, in submitting the plan to the District Court, the jury did not purport to reapportion itself in accordance with the 1968 enabling legislation, see n 2, supra, and statutes cited therein, which permitted police juries and school boards to adopt at-large elections. App. 56. Moreover, since the Louisiana enabling legislation was opposed by the Attorney General of the United States under § 5 of the Voting Rights Act, the jury did not have the authority to reapportion itself. See n 2, supra; Tr. of Oral Arg. 13-14, 31-32, 43-44. Since the reapportionment scheme was submitted and adopted pursuant to court order, the preclearance procedures of § 5 do not apply. Connor v. Johnson, 402 U. S. 690 , 402 U. S. 691 (1971).
I consider it unnecessary to reach the question discussed, ante at 424 U. S. 638 -639, n. 6. It was, as the Court observes in n 6, "not raised by the petitioners, nor did respondent file a cross-petition." The scope of § 5 of the Voting Rights Act is an important matter, and I would not undertake to express any view on what the Court discusses by way of dicta in n. 6.