Response to Request for Admissions

    Von XO V 

  

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE 
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA 

NORTHERN DIVISION 

JOHN DILLARD, ET AL., 

Plaintiffs, 

CIVIL ACTION NO. 85-T-1332-N VS. 

CRENSHAW COUNTY, ALABAMA, 
ET AL., 

Defendants. 

RESPONSE TO THE REQUEST FOR ADMISSIONS   

Defendant, Escambia County and the individual defendants residing 

therein respond to plaintiffs' request for admissions as follows: 

These defendants object to the questions submitted as to the 

record of the State of Alabama in that such record does not have 

any relevance or bearing on the ‘actions taken by Escambia County 

voters or Escambia County Commission nor does it have any relevance on 

the issues of this case. The State of Alabama is not a party: to this 

action, nor are any counties other than the seven named in.2 the 

amendment. Escambia county is a political subdivision of the State of 

Alabama, however, it does not carry the sovereignty nor immunity of 

the State of" Alabama. It is a public body corporate possessing only 

those powers and duties granted to it by the Legislature of Alabama or 

necessarily implied from those statutes passed by the Legislature. It 

has no authority of law to bind the State of Alabama by ““1ts actions 

nor does a judgment against Escambia County constitute a judgment 

against the State of Alabama. 

 



  

In the case of documents mentioned. in ‘the interrogatories, 

defendants further object on the grounds that the documents would 

speak for themselves and that the very most that said defendants could 

possibly do would be to admit that the documents referred to stated 

what the documents purported to state but without specific knowledge 

defendants could not admit or deny the subject matter to which the 

documents referred. Code Sections and opinions by Courts are subject 

to interpretation and such documents would speak for themselves. 

Newspaper articles might state a particular thing which may or may not 

be true. 

For these and other reasons defendants object to admission 

requests numbered 1 through and including number 11, number 13 through 

and including number 78, number 82 through and including number 93. 

12. Admitted. 

79. Admitted. 

80. We admit that the democratic party uses a run off primary 

for County Commission, however, the republican party has not used a 

primary in Escambia County to the best of our knowedge and belief. 

81. Denied. 

Oh, "In years past such may have been a tenuous state 

policy, however, on information and belief all counties operated under 

local acts passed separately and usually by local courtesy in the 

state legislature. According to our information and belief, 

approximately one-half of the counties operated on the district 

system. 

 



  

95. We possess insufficient information to either admit or deny. 

96. Answer to number 94 is hereby adopted. Escambia County 

operated under the district system during the period in question until 

1963. 

97. We possess insufficient information to either admit or deny, 

the statement as to Escambia, however, is denied. 

08, Denied. 

99, Denied. 

100. Denied. 

101. Denied. 

Aol LL il SS A 4 
LAA (AA TTS 

JAMES W. WEBB ! 
Attorney for Escambia County 

  

OF COUNSEL: 

WEBB, CRUMPTON, McGREGOR, SCHMAELING & WILSON 

166 Commerce Street, P.O. Box 238 
Montgomery, Alabama 36101 
(205) 834-3176 

OTTS & MOORE 
P.O. Box 467 
Brewton, Alabama 36427 
(205) 867-7724 

CERTIFICATE O VIC 

I hereby certify that. copies of. the foregoing response 

to interrogatories by defendant, Timothy A. Hawsey have been mailed to 
Larry T. Menefee, Esquire, James U, Blacksher, Esquire and Wanda ‘J. 
Cochran, Esquire, Blacksher, Menefee & Stein, 405 Van Antwerp 
Building, P.O. Boxé 1057, “Mobile,. Alabama 36633, Terry :G. Davis, 
Esquire, Seay + &. Davis, . 732 «Carter Hill" Road, P.O. "Box 6125, 
Montgomery, Alabama 36106, Deborah Fins, Esquire. and Julius LL. 

Chambers, Esquire, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, 99 Hudson Street, 16th 
Floor, New York, New York, 10013, Jack Floyd, Esquire, Floyd, Kenner & 

Cusimano, 816 Chestnut Street, Gadsden, Alabama 35999, Alton Turner, 

 



  

Esquire, Turner & Jones, P.O. Box 207, Luverne, Alabama 36049, D.L. 
Martin, Esquire, 215 S. Main Street, Moulton, Alabama 35650, David R. 
Boyd, Esquire, Balch & Bingham, P.O. Box 78, Montgomery, Alabama 
36101, W.0." Kirk, =Jr., Esquire, .-Corry & Kirk, “Phoenix "Avenue 
Carrollton, Alabama 35447, Barry D. Vaughn, Esquire, Proctor & Vaughn, 
121 N. Norton Avenue, Sylacauga, Alabama 35150, H.R. Burnham, Esquire, 
Burnham, Klinefelter, Halsey, Jones & Cater, 401 SouthTrust Bank 
Building, ‘P.O. Box 1618, = Anniston, "Alabama 36202, Varren Rowe; 
Esquire, Rowe, Rowe & Sawyer, P.O. Box 150, Enterprise, Alabama 36331, 
Edward Still, Esquire, T14 South 29th Street, Birmingham, Alabama 
35233-2810, Reo Kirkland, Jr., Esquire, P.O. Box 646, Brewton, Alabama 
36427, and all defendants not represented by counsel by placing copies 
of the same in the United States Mail, postage prepaid this the 2EIVA 

day of February, 1986. 

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Jal W.- Webb vf