Correspondence from Edmisten to Leonard; Submission; Correspondence from Bradford Reynolds to Heenan McGuan

    fitate of $ort\ $,arcIina
,Eepartrnctrt of lJ rrrtire

P. O. BOX 629

RALEIGH

27602-0629

October 4, 1984

The Honorable J. Rich Leonard
C1erk, IJnited States District Court
Federal Building
Raleigh, North Carolina 2761L

Re: Gingles v. Ed.misten;
No. 81-83-CIV-5

Dear Mr. Leonard:

Enclosed please find for filing the original and four copies
of Defendants' Submission of Defendantsr Exhibit 88. I have
sent copies to Judges Phi11ips, Dupree and Britt under separate
cover.

In addition, we have disccveredthat the Defendantsr
Exhibits 84, 85, and 86, which were attached to Defendants'
Response and Memorandum in Opposition to Plaintif f sr },lotion for
Further Re1ief (fi1ed September 2'7, 1984) should be labeled
Exhibits 84A, B5A, and 86A, respectively. Please advise if
this is insufficient notice to a1low you to correct this clerical
error in your files.

Sincerely,

Ir

RUFUS L. EOMISTEN
ATTORNEY GENERAL

T;""A',*g
Assistant Attorney Ge{era1
Telephone: (919) 733'4721

TBS/gh
Enclosures
cc: The Honorable J. Dickson Phi11ips, Jr.

The Honorable W. Earl Britt
The Honorable Franklin T. DuPree
I\'Is. Leslie Winner

rzMs. Lani Guini-er
Mr. Robert Hunter



UNITED STATES
EASTERN DISTRICT

RALEIGH

DISTRICT COURT
OF NORTH CAROLINA
DIVISION

RALPH GINGLES, et dI.,
Plaintiffs,

vs.

RUFUS L. EDI{ISTEN, €t dI-,
Defendants.

No. 81-803-CIv-5

SUBMISSION

NOW CoME the Defendants in the above-entitled action and

submit to the Court attached Defendants' Exhibit 88, a copy of

the letter from the United States Department of Justice

interposing an objection to the apportionment of North carolina

House of Representatives Districts 8 and 70ras enacted by the

North Carolina General Assembly in House Bill 2, Chapter I (1984)

Respectfurly submitted this 4A u^, of october, 1984.

RUFUS L. EDMISTEN
Attorney General

/,oio4<
C.*{are e. SmileY

Assistant AttorneY
N.C. Department of
P. O. Box 629
Raleigh, NC 27602

Telephone: (919) 733- 3377

Ge
Ju

ra1
tice



CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that I have this day served copies of the

foregoj-ng Submission by placing a copy of same in the United

States Mai1, postage prepaid, adCressed to:

Ms. Leslie Winner
Chambers, Ferguson, Watt, Wa11as,

Adkins & Fuller, P.A.
951 South Independence Boulevard
Charlotte, NC 28202

Ms. Lani Guini-er
99 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10013

Mr. Robert N. Hunter, Jr..
Attorney at Law
P. O. Box 3245
Greensboro, NC 27402

This .n" t/A day of october, 1984.

SMILEY



l+'o sh ington, D.C. 20 5 30

Octol:er 1, 1934

il..iii,l, :n llr-':t't'in licCuan, Esg'
'iire Farr:;.2ut 3tr ilrii ng
900 S(--vcn!"q1tt-h Sl-reet, l':.W.
,.',:rllit-r -lj-,)n, D.C. 20005

-',r)- l1s. :'l(:ijin:

Thisreferstoi]ouSeBil12,Chapter1.trg.9.4),which
i,rovictes for ;;;- Ipportion*en[-ot North-.carolina House of
iiepresentatives oislricts I and 70, subm'itted to the Attorney
cc-.eral_ pursuunt-t" s"ction s "r 

the Voting Rights.Act of 1965'

as amended , 42"i.i.c' 1973;' we received information to
supplement your-submission-on July 31, 1984, and again on

september 2g,1gli. while we have noted your request for
expeoited cons;;;;-tion of this submissionr dS you are aware

questions "on""ining i-t 1."r"--nqrsisted and, thusr w€ have been

unable to resPond untit this time'

I,Jehaveconsideredcarefully!h.informationyouhave
Drcvicled, as weIl as "o*r"n[=-ina 

information Provided by other

interested parties. rire prop"=tJ 9i?tIicting' occasioned by

the court's t;ii;; in Gingi;;-;' Edmisten' civ' Action No' 81-

803-CrV-5 (E. D. lt.C. Jan. fi iggaT;Tffit"= one single-member

ctistrict (6g.1t black popri"iion) and one three-member district
(29.6t black *oriuti"'n)- for the Edgecombe/Nash/wilson county

area. r,..nile this plan pr"iia"= min5rities with a realistic
oplrcrtun ity to elect a ."pr"iuntative of their choice to the

legislature fro^-if," singie-member district involved, w€ also

note that, auiirn-rhis r"ai"fii"ting process, another proposal

(plan lis4), ":;i:t;i;; 
;;i;";i;;i;-;"*u.' districts and providins

for a seco,d Ai=Ltict i. ur'ni"n [fr" *inority community Iikely
i,;ou1d have a ;i;;;;i;";t influence on the tutcome of elections'
',r'3s colrs i,Jered and reje"t"Jl-i"pqttedly to protect a white

inr:urnbentfrornsuchminorityinffuence'Inadditionrw€under-
stand rtrat a 

-second tf,ree-n'e*;;;-;iitti"t proposal ( Plan N62)

'',,aSrejectedforsimilar"on""'n"whenitwasdiscernedtlrata



'-:-:--,a
-z-

si rrilar single-rnember riistrict conf fgul?tion would result
.:r.ou1cl the stit"-u"-.u.ruired to subdivi.re that murtimember
,tistrict into =inq1e-n6mber ones. The r.csponS€S which, to
,l ,l-e, h ave been f 6rthcolni ng wi th respect to this c1a im have

l, ''r':il t:Onf.1. i r:1: i- ng.

:.,-:tr: t: ?,r.c1- j.t>r'r 5 of t-he Vot ing Rights Actl Ih: submitting
,'.1 '-,i-j.i-1, l-.:j i.l.:e l>iti--,1'ln t,i iht'u'ing-LhaI a submitted change has

i,,),ii,,,r{.i.,riti,:Lr)rlY purirose or effec[' See Georgia v' Uni!ed
statcs, -arr 11.s. 526 (1973t: tf thg eviaei6-5Eore [s is
,: , i:-l-i-,:t- i,:J ;r|r,-l l-.he At i-otn"V Cenerat is unable tO deter:mine
r]..i- ll ,-, ,:.. ,.r,= ,j,,,:s ll()t lr-'u"-ti,"-f iof ibited PurPose- and ef fect'
..r 1j,-,n :.,i,)lit l;r: irrl-r:r1-,o"oa. 

-S"e 28 C'F'R' 5I'39(c)' Be-
''I

,. ", .i'. i l.i; ,.t al- j r:: l'.,lr3 ;r.-ature of the inforlnation we have '
..: .e ,-;f-',,'1.rch crrly t,rr,rieO'-u"-"n September 28, 1984' T cannot

,-L ti-,is ti-;e crn(llude t'irat if,. StatL has'carried its burden'
lj,;;]-.: ir)'(Qr oD irehalf of the Attorney Geneial' I must interpose
an oirlF-'ction to the apportionment o? Districts 8 and 7O as

r.:f 1,:cr:ed in tiou se B iI1 2. HOwever, pursuant' to our guidelines'
28C.F.R.51.45,wewillcontinueouranalysis-ofthismatter
to deternine whether there i"-. basis for withdrawing the
c-rc je ct ion .

ofcourse,asprovidedbysection5ofthevotingRights
Act, you nare-ir,e rigrrt to-se.r'a declaratory judgment from the
'aniteC States oistri6t Courl-ior-the Distric[ of Columbia that
iiiese chanqes have neither the purpose nor rlill have the effect
of iji:ni'irg orcutioging -th" riglc-to vote on account of race or
color. itci{ever, until the-"Ui6"tion. is withdrawn or a judgment

fr-o:r, rhe nistiict of corumUll'c"uil ii.obtained, the effect of
rhe cbjecrion by the Attgf;;t cEnlt"f is to make the apportion-
ment of Distri.is I and 70 I'egally unenforceable' 28 C't"R'
=1 0

Toenab]-ethisDepartmenttomeetitsresPonsibility
to e'force Llle !.'oLing nighis Act' please inform us of the
{l(-)rlr.<je of act i-on the St-ate of North Carolina plans to take with
:.r-::j:,ncr- to tliis rliat{-er. If you !?"9-?ly questionst feel free
t-o t:,:i1.1 Sancra s. col-eman i 

''t'z-lza'5718i ' 
Deputy Director of

t]:e3e'ction5UnitoftheVotingsection.

Civil Right-s Division