Dallas County District Judge Entz's Objections to Request for Judicial Notice

    HUGHES & LUCE 
2800 MOMENTUM PLACE 

1717 MAIN STREET 

  

DALLAS, TEXAS 75201 1500 FIRST STATE BANK BUILDING 

400 WEST 15TH STREET 
(214) 939-5500 AUSTIN, TEXAS 78701 

TELECOPIER (214) 939-6100 (512) 482-6800 
TELEX 730836 TELECOPIER (812) 474-4258 

Direct Dial Number 
(214) 939-5581 

September 14, 1989 

VIA FEDERAL EXPRESS 

Mr. John Neill 

United States Pistrict Court 
Western District of Texas 
Midland-QOdessa Division 
316 U.S7T Courthouse 
200 Past Wall Street 
Midland, Texas 79701 

z Re: League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), 
et al. Y. Jim Mattox, et al., Civil Action 
MO 88 CA 154 

Dear Mr. Neill: 

Enclosed please find an original and two copies of Dallas 
County District Judge F. Harold Entz's Objections to Request 
for Judicial Notice. 

Please return file-marked copies to me in the enclosed 
envelope. Please note that copies of the above documents are 
being sent by Federal Express to the other parties. 

If you have any questions, please call. Thank you. 

Very truly yours, 

ER ol, 
David C. Godbey Wr 

DCG/pai 

Enclosures 

 



(FEDERAL EXPRESS) 

William L. Garrett 

Rolando Rios 

Susan Finkelstein 
Sherrill A. Ifill VY 
Gabrielle K. McDonald 
Edward B. Cloutman, III 

E. Brice Cunningham 
Renea Hicks 
Ken Oden 

David R. Richards 

J. Eugene Clements 

Darrell Smith 
Michael J. Wood 

 



  

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS 

MIDLAND-ODESSA DIVISION 

LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN 

AMERICAN CITIZENS 

(LULAC), et al., 

Plaintiffs, 

CIVIL ACTION NO. 

Vi MO 88 CA 154 

JIM MATTOX, et al., 

C2
 

2 
LA

I 
LI
 

LA
I 

CA
I 

CA
I 

CA
 

LA
I 

LA
 

A)
 

Defendants. 

DALLAS COUNTY DISTRICT JUDGE F. HAROLD ENTZ'S 
OBJECTIONS TO REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE 
  

Defendant Intervenor Judge Entz objects to the requests 

for judicial notice by plaintiffs and plaintiff-intervenors 

for the following reasons: 

1. Plaintiffs and plaintiff-intervenors for Dallas have 

requested the Court to take judicial notice of certain cases 

and Department of Justice letters. It is unclear from the 

Requests whether they are requesting the Court to take notice 

of the existence of the referenced letters and cases, or to 

take judicial notice of the factual conclusions and findings 

reflected in the letters and cases. 

2. In the event that plaintiffs and plaintiff- 

intervenors simply desire the Court to take notice of the 

existence of the letters and cases (i.e., that the letters 

exist and that the copies attached are correct copies of the 

actual letter), then Judge Entz does not object to that form 

of judicial notice. 

JUDGE ENTZ'S OBJECTIONS TO REQUEST 

FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE -- PAGE 1 

 



  

3. In the alternative, if plaintiffs and plaintiff- 

intervenors want the Court in this action to take judicial 

notice of all of the factual conclusions reflected in the 

letters and cases as being applicable factual conclusions in 

the context of this case, then Judge Entz most strongly 

objects to such judicial notice and requests a hearing on this 

issue, as required by Fed. R. Evid. 201(e). 

4. With respect to the cases, Judge Entz was not a party 

to the earlier actions and cannot be bound by findings in 

them. More significantly, even were those facts correct at 

the time, there is no indication that they are pertinent to 

judicial races or to the present time frame. Finally, court 

opinions per se are not adjudicative facts, but are 

legislative facts outside the scope of Rule 201. 

5. With respect to the Department of Justice letters, 

they do not on their face explain what was done to investigate 

the allegations they discuss and they certainly do not reflect 

the kind of fact contemplated by Rule 201(b) for notice. Even 

were they proper evidence (which Judge Entz does not concede), 

they would not conclusively establish the factual 

conclusions. In effect, that is what plaintiffs and plaintiff 

intervenors are asking the Court to do through the guise of 

judicial notice. 

6. Accordingly, Judge Entz objects to plaintiffs' and 

plaintiff-intervenors' request for judicial notice and urges 

the Court to deny that request. 

JUDGE ENTZ'S OBJECTIONS TO REQUEST 
FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE -- PAGE 2 

 



  

Respectfully submitted, 

Robert H. Mow, 

David C. Godbey 
Bobby M. Rubarts 

Esther R. Rosenblum 

  

of HUGHES & LUCE 

2800 Momentum Place 

1717 Main Street 

Dallas, Texas 75201 

(214) 939-5500 

ATTORNEYS FOR DALLAS 

COUNTY DISTRICT JUDGE 
F. HAROLD ENTZ 

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE   

I certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing 

instrument was served upon all counsel of record in accordance 

with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure this / 7 day of 

September, 1989. 

  DAL, og 

JUDGE ENTZ'S OBJECTIONS TO REQUEST 

FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE -- PAGE 3