Defendants' Third Set of Interrogatories and Request for Production; Requests for Admission

    , . . ‘

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA
RALEIGH DIVISION

RALPH GINGLES, et al., NO. 81—803-CIV-5
Plaintiffs,
vs.
RUFUS L. EDMISTEN, et al.,
Defendants.
-and-
ALAN V. PUGH, et al., NO. 81-1066-CIV-5
Plaintiffs,
vs.
JAMES B. HUNT, JR., et al.,
Defendants.
~and—
JOHN J. CAVANAGH, et al., NO. 82—545-CIV—5
Plaintiffs,
vs.

ALEX K. BROCK, et al.

Defendants.

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

 

DEFENDANTS' THIRD SET OF
INTERROGATORIES AND REQUESTS FOR
PRODUCTION; REQUESTS FOR ADMISSION
COME NOW the Defendants in the above—styled action

and, pursuant to Rules 33, 34, and 36 of the Federal Rules

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of Civil Procedure propound to all Plaintiffs in the actions

entitled Gingles, et al. v. Edmisten, et al., No. 81-803-CIV—5

 

and Pugh, et al. v. Hunt, et al., No. 81—1066—CIV-5, and

 

their attorneys of record the following interrogatories, re—
quests for production, and requests for admission to be
answered and responded to within 30 days after service
hereof.

Instructions for response remain the same as those
set forth in Defendants' previous interrogatories and re—
quests for production in this action. If you deem your
response to any previous interrogatory propounded by
Defendants in this action sufficient to constitute a
response to any of the following interrogatories, so indi—

cate by specifically referencing to your former response.

***

1. Do you
tive districts exist
candidates have been
have the opportunity

._3_

contend that Senate and House legisla-
in North Carolina from which minority

elected but in which minorities do not
to elect candidates of their choice?

If so, explain your answer, including in your explanation

the identity of each

such district.

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2. Do you contend that minority voters in North
Carolina currently are denied the same opportunity to par—
ticipate in the political process as other citizens enjoy,
or to elect candidates of their choice? If so, is your
contention based solely on the fact that the creation of
legislative districts comprising higher concentrations of
minority voters would enable them to elect more minority
members to North Carolina's Senate and House of Representa—
tives? If not, identify other factors which result in North
Carolina's minority voters' not having the same opportunity
to participate currentl in the political process as other
citizens enjoy and to eEect the representatives of their
choice.

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3. As for the term "to elect representatives of
their choice," (Third Supplement to the Complaint and Amend-
ment to Complaint, fll53), do you contend that only the
election of minority candidates indicates that minority
voters are being given the opportunity "to elect repre-
sentatives of their choice?" If your response is "No,"
what other factors do you contend could be used to indi—
cate that minority voters are being given the opportunity
"to elect representatives of their choice?" Explain your
answer.

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4. Do you contend that North Carolina has a
history of official discrimination in the state that has
adversely affected the right of the members of any minority
group to register, to vote, or to participate otherwise in
the democratic process and which continues to adversely
affect that right? Explain your answer.

 

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5. Do you contend that voting in the elections
for members of North Carolina's Senate and House is
racially polarized?

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6. If your response to Interrogatory No. 5 is
"yes," do you intend to introduce evidence to prove your
contention at trial?

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7. If your response to Interrogatory No. 6 is

"yes," please set forth the following:

a. Each election's contest with respect to
which you contend voting was racially polarized;

b. The district in which said election was held;
0. The date on which said election was held;

d. The manner in which you will attempt to prove
that said election involved racially polarized

voting;

e. Produce the documentary evidence you intend
to offer at trial to support your contention;

f. ,Identify the witnesses you will call to
testify in support of your contention and give a
summary of their testimony.

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8. Have you prepared, or have you had prepared,
any analysis of past and/or current voting practices of
any ethinically or racially identifiable group of voters
in North Carolina for the purpose of attempting to deter—
mine whether racially polarized voting has occurred, or
continues to occur, in the State. If so, please produce
all documents which indicate the results of the analysis.

-ll—

9. Do you contend that unusually large legis-
lative election districts exist in North Carolina?

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10. Do you contend that all multi-member legis-
lative districts currently in existence in North Carolina
constitute per se unusually large legislative election
districts? _E§pIain your answer.

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11. If your response to Interrogatory No. 9 was
"yes" and your response to Interrogatory No. 10 was "no,"
identify those multi-member districts which are not
unusually large and those which, you contend, are unusually
large. Explain your answer.

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12. Do any multi-member legislative election
districts currently exist in North Carolina which you do
not contend constitute districts in which minority voters
are denied the same opportunity to participate in the
political process as other citizens enjoy or to elect
candidates of their choice? If so, identify each such
district and explain your answer with respect to each.

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13. Do you contend that, within the past five
years, there has been a significant lack of responsiveness
on the part of the General Assembly of North Carolina to the
particularized needs of the members of any minority group?
If so, set forth each such lack of responsiveness with
respect to which you intend to introduce evidence at trial,
identify each witness you intend to call to testify as to
such lack of responsiveness, summarizing his testimony, and
produce copies of all documents or other paperwritings you

intend to introduce to prove such significant lack of
responsiveness.

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14. Do you contend that recent political campaigns
in North Carolina have been characterized by overt or subtle
racial appeals on the part of either minority or non—minority
voters or candidates? If so, set forth the following:

a. Identify the campaigns;

b. Identify the manner in which racial appeals
were made;

c. Identify the persons making racial appeals
and indicate the race of each;

d. State the content of the racial appeals;

e. If you intend to introduce proof of any such
racial appeals, identify each witness who will
testify to the occurrence of such racial appeals
and summarize his testimony;

f. If you intend to introduce proof of any such
racial appeals, please produce copies of all
documents or other paperwritings you intend to
introduce to prove the occurrence of such racial
appeals.

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15. Do you contend that North Carolina currently
employs any policy underlying its use of any voting quali-
fication, prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or
procedure which is tenuous (that is, which markedly departs
from past practices) and which denies minority voters the
same opportunity to participate in the political processes
as other citizens enjoy or to elect the representatives of
their choice?

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16. If your response to Interrogatory No. 15
was "yes," identify each such tenuous policy and indicate
which use it underlies, explaining your answer.

a. Explain why you contend such policy is tenuous.

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REQUESTS FOR ADMISSION

1. Do you admit that two members of the five-
member North Carolina State Board of Elections are black?

2. Do you admit that 12 members of the North
Carolina General Assembly are black?

3. Do you admit that, out of the 12 black members
of the General Assembly elected in the November, 1982,

general election in North Carolina, 5 were elected from
portions of the State not covered by the Voting Rights Act?

4. Do you admit that black members in the current
North Carolina General Assembly represent every major metro—
politan area in North Carolina in which there are signifi—
cant concentrations of black voters, including those major

metropolitan areas not covered by the Voting Rights Act and
lying within multi-member districts?

Q

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This the :2! day of January, 1983.

RUFUS L. EDMISTEN
ATTORNEY GEN

  
  

. allace, J .’
=outy Attorney General for
Legal Affairs
Post Office Box 629
Raleigh, North Carolina 27602
(919) 733-3377

Norma Harrell
Tiare Smiley
Assistant Attorneys General

John Lassiter
Associate Attorney General

Jerris Leonard

Kathleen Heenan

Jerris Leonard & Associates, P.C.
900 17th Street, N.W.

Suite 1020

Washington, D. C. 20006

(202) 872—1095

Attorneys for Defendants

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

 

I hereby certify that I have this day served the
foregoing Defendants' Third Set of Interrogatories and Re-
quests for Production; Requests for Admission by placing a
copy of same in the United States Post Office, postage pre—
paid, addressed to:

Mr. J. Levonne Chambers

Ms. Leslie Winner

Chambers, Ferguson, Watt, Wallas,
Adkins & Fuller, P.A.

951 South Independence Boulevard

Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

Mr. Jack Greenberg

Mr. James M. Nabritt III
Ms. Lani Guinier

10 Columbus Circle

New York, New York 10019

Mr. Arthur J. Donaldson

Burke, Donaldson, Holshouser & Kenerly
309 North Main Street

Salisbury, North Carolina 28144

Mr. Robert N. Hunter, Jr.
Attorney at Law

Post Office Box 3245

Greensboro, North Carolina 27402

This the a}: day of January, 1983.