Order Tentatively Approving Compromise and Requiring Notice to the Class; Notice to Class

    . 9 FILED 

  

IN THE U BATES "DISTRICT COURT 
FOR THE ETE Ts OF ALABAMA JAN 13 1687 
  

  

NORTHERN DIVISION THOMAS C. CAVER, CLER¥ 

JOHN DILLARD, ET AL., AES TEE ALA BY ero cern 

Plaintiffs, 

vs. CIVIL ACTION NO. CV 85-T-1332-N 

CRENSHAW COUNTY, ALABAMA 
ET AL., 

Defendants. 

ORDER TENTATIVELY APPROVING COMPROMISE 

AND REQUIRING NOTICE TO THE CLASS 
  

At a conference in chambers on January 13. ’ 
  

1987, counsel for all of the parties informed the court that they 

had reached a final compromise and settlement of this action and 

sought this court's tentative approval of its terms. 

By joint motion, plaintiffs and the Lawrence County Board of 

Education ask that the Lawrence County Board of Education be added 

as a parley defendant. Upon the representation of the parties, the 

court finds that the Lawrence County Board of Education is elected 

by an at-large election system that is in relevant respects the 

same as the system by which members of the Lawrence County Commis- 

sion are elected and that the election system for the Board of 

Education is subject to similar claims made by plaintiffs in this 

action that it violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. 

Counsel has appeared on behalf of the Lawrence County Board of 

Education and has agreed by his appearance to accept all necessary 

service of process to enable the Lawrence County Board of Education 

 



  

to be made a party defendant. Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED 

that the Lawrence County Board of Education be joined as a defen- 

dant. 

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, the parties have 

agreed to the entry of an injunction requiring that elections for 

the Lawrence County Board of Education be conducted from 

single-member districts, while allowing the incumbents to serve 

until 1988, 

The court is of the opinion that the proposed consent decree 

filed with said joint motion is due to be and hereby is approved 

tentatively, subject to any objections by members of the class. 

Pursuant to Rule 23(e), Fed.R.Civ.P., notice of this proposed 

compromise should be given to the members of the class Of black 

citizens of Lawrence County, Alabama. 

Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that the defendant Lawrence 

County Board of Education cause the notice attached to this order 

to be published in The Moulton Advertiser once a week for three 
  

successive weeks prior to February 12 yi 198.7. Maps ‘of the 
  

districts shall be displayed in the central administrative office 

of the Lawrence County Board of Education during normal business 

hours. 

It is further ORDERED that copies of the attached notice be 

provided by the defendant Lawrence County Board of Education to 

representatives of all local radio and television stations and to 

 



  

all representatives of media and black community organizations in 

Lawrence County who may request a copy thereof. 

  

Thereafter on February 23 /7188 7 , at. 9:00 o'clock 
  

2 .m., this court shall conduct a hearing in the federal courthouse 

in Montgomery, Alabama, to consider objections by members of the 

class to the proposed compromise and settlement. 

DONE this 13th day of January yi 198.7. 
  

  

    Li] MO ee v 
  

{ < 

UNITED STATES 'DISTRICT JUDGE— 

 



  

IN-THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT LOURT 
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA 

NORTHERN DIVISION 
  

JOHN DILLARD, ET AL., 

Plaintiffs, 

Vv. CIVIL ACTION NO. CV 85-T-1332-N 

CRENSHAW COUNTY, ALABAMA 
ET Als, 

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Defendants. 

NOTILE 10 LLASS 
  

TO: ALL BLACK CITIZENS OF LAWRENCE COUNTY, ALABAMA: 

In this class action brought by Hoover White, Mose 

Jones, Jr., and Arthur Turner, on behalf of themselves and al} 

black citizens of Lawrence County, Alabama, challenging the 

election system for the Lawrence County Board of Education, the 

named plaintiffs and the defendant Lawrence County Board of 

Education have informed this Court that they wish to compromise 

ang finally ‘to vesolve This lawsuit on the following basis. 

1. A final injunction would be issued against the 

conduct of further elections of members of the Lawrence County 

Board of Education under the at-large election scheme provided 

presently by state law. 

2. Under the proposed settlement, all incumbent Board 

of Education members would serve until replaced by their 

successors elected in regular primary and general elections in 

1988. Those elections For all five seats would be conducted from 

 



  

single-member districts. The boundaries of those single-member 

districts would be the same as those utilized for the Lawrence 

County Commission. The normal terms of office for Board of 

Education members would continue to be six-year staggered terms. 

However, in order to stagger the terms, the member of the 

Lawrence County Board of Education elected in 1988 from District 

3 shall serve an initial two-year term until an successor is 

elected in 1990. The members of the Lawrence County Board of 

Fducation elected in 1988 from Districts 1. .and 4 shall serve an 

initial four-year term until successors are elected in 1992. 

Members of the Lawrence County Board of Education elected in 1088 

from. Districts 2 and 5.shall serve for six years until 1994, 

3. On a temporary basis, the Lawrence County Board of 

Education shall be expanded to six members. The named 

plaintiffs, in their capacity as representatives of the plaintiff 

class of all black citizens. in Lawrence County, after approval of 

this" consent decree Dy the court, shall promptly submit g list of 

not less than three qualified persons to the Lawrence County 

Board of Education which shall select from that list one person 

who shall be sworn in as a member of the Lawrence County Board of 

Education. This new member shall serve as an at-large member like 

all other board members only until successors are elected and 

take office in 1988. This member shall have all the rights, 

powers and duties as the other members of the Lawrence County 

Board of Education. The votes of the six-member board shall be 

recorded in the same manner as they have or would have heretofore 

 



been recorded. 

4. Plaintiffs are the prevailing party in this action 

and are entitled to recover reasonable attorneys' fees and 

expenses. The amount of attorneys' fees and expenses will be 

determined by the court following final approval of the proposed 

compromise. Fees and expenses have not been part of the 

negotiations leading to this proposed settlement. 

: 5. The court has tentatively approved the settlement of 

this case on the basis stated above. However, because this 

Tawsuit 35 a class action, this court has the responsibility of 

assuring that the interest of fhe entire class of Dplack citizens 

of Lawrence County are equally protected before giving its final 

approval to the proposed settlement. Accordingly, if any black 

citizen of Lawrence County, Alabama, objects to the proposed 

compromise and final resolution of this lawsuit, he or she should 

set out the objection iin writing, identifying this case by 11s 

name and number and mail the written objection to Mr. Thomas C. 

Caver, {lerk of the United States District Couri.for ithe Middle 

District of Alabama, P.0. Box 731, Montgomery, Alabama 36106, or 

deliver such objection fo the Office of the (Clerk, second floor 

of the U.S. Courthouse, Montgomery, Alabama, on or before the 

19th day of February 1987. In: addition, this court will 
  

conduct a public hearing on the 23rd day of February ’ 
  

19587 at "5:80 o'clock a .h., 8% which time it will rcnsider all 

objections from members of the plaintiff class Lo the proposed 

settlement, whether made in writing or in person.  



Dated this 13th day of January 33287. 

  

  

THOMAS C. CAVER 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT CLERK 

rani. Mh. die 

  

  
Chief Deputy Clerk