Correspondence from Blacksher to Judge Pittman

Public Court Documents
October 25, 1982

Cite this item
Correspondence from Blacksher to Judge Pittman preview

2 pages

Cite this item

  • Case Files, Bolden v. Mobile Hardbacks and Appendices. Correspondence from Blacksher to Judge Pittman, 1982. 20dab1dd-cdcd-ef11-b8e8-7c1e520b5bae. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/83228b5b-9201-4f90-acb3-428b7afbb820/correspondence-from-blacksher-to-judge-pittman. Accessed December 06, 2025.

    Copied!

    wn) 

: 
® 

BLACKSHER, MENEFEE & STEIN, PLA. 

ATTORNEYS AT LAW 

  

405 VAN ANTWERP BUILDING 

P. 0. BOX 1051 

MOBILE, ALABAMA 36633 

JAMES U. BLACKSHER October 25, 1982 TELEPHONE 

LARRY T. MENEFEE (205) 433-2000 
GREGORY 8. STEIN 

  

Honorable Virgil Pittman 
Senior Judge 
United States District Court 
P. DO. Box 465 
Mobile, Alabama 36652 

RE: Wiley L. Bolden, et al. v. City of Mobile, Alabama, 
et al.; Civil Action No. 75-297-P 

a TR ——   

Dear Judge Pittman: 

Enclosed is a copy of a motion we have filed this date in the 
subject action. This motion is in response to the matters 
discussed with you by myself and Mr. Stout on Monday, October 
18. 

As 1 indicated to Your Honor in our conference, and as we have 
spelled out in the enclosed motion, our concern is that there be 
sufficient time for appellate review of your decision about 
whether or not to hold interim elections in 1983. Practical 
experience in this and other election cases has taught us that, 
if you refuse to order interim elections or if you stay interim 
elections for 1983, with the time now left to us for appellate 
review, the opportunity for elections at that time may well be 
Tost by default. We do not wish to take an appeal from the 
Court's refusal to rule. So we respectfully request that you 
issue a timely ruling either on the enclosed motion or on our 
original motion for a permanent injunction. 

With regard to our argument that interim elections in 1983 are 
necessary, I enclose a copy of the three-judge court's order in 
Burton v. Hobbie, No. 81-617-N, the Alabama legislative | 
reapportionment case, which indicates that court's intention to 
require interim elections for the Legislature in the Fall of 
1983. These elections will effectively reduce the terms of the 
legislators elected this year from four years to one year. 

  

I also call to Your Honor's attention Watson v. Commissioners 
Court of Harrison County, 616 F.2d 105, 107 (5th Cir. 13807, 

  

  

 



i1 Pittman October 

which indicates that allowing incumbents elected under an 
unconstitutional plan to serve a full four-year term may well 
considered an abuse of discretion by the Court of Appeals. 

Best regards. 

Yery respectfully, 

BLACKSHER, MENEFEE & STEIN, P.A. 
~, 

; Lf ; : 

vd wl Y rer Ae 
/ pA WAAL LC 

\ [] U 9 BLA CKSHE 124 

Encl 

JUB :nwp 

{(w/0 enc)

Copyright notice

© NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.

This collection and the tools to navigate it (the “Collection”) are available to the public for general educational and research purposes, as well as to preserve and contextualize the history of the content and materials it contains (the “Materials”). Like other archival collections, such as those found in libraries, LDF owns the physical source Materials that have been digitized for the Collection; however, LDF does not own the underlying copyright or other rights in all items and there are limits on how you can use the Materials. By accessing and using the Material, you acknowledge your agreement to the Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Materials.

Additional info

To the extent that LDF includes information about the Materials’ origins or ownership or provides summaries or transcripts of original source Materials, LDF does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of such information, transcripts or summaries, and shall not be responsible for any inaccuracies.