No agreement on next steps in Mississippi Supreme Court redistricting case, filings show

The Mississippi State Board of Election Commissioners and plaintiffs challenging the state Supreme Court district maps were unable to reach agreement on the next steps in the litigation, a status update filed this week in U.S. District Court said.

The case was remanded to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais, the filings said. The remand followed an earlier order by U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock requiring the redrawing of state Supreme Court districts set in 1987 to accommodate greater Black voting strength.

In its filing, the State asked the court to allow additional discovery and briefing before oral arguments. The State wrote that Callais “imposes a new standard that governs plaintiffs’ claim under section 2 of the Voting Rights Act” and urged the court to require plaintiffs to file factual allegations under the new standard, saying the decision focuses liability on intentional discrimination.

The plaintiffs — State Sen. Derrick Simmons, Dyamone White, U.S. Senate candidate Ty Pinkins and Constance Olivia Slaughter Harvey-Burwell — are represented by the ACLU of Mississippi and the Southern Poverty Law Center, the response said. The plaintiffs told the court they have already submitted evidence under the updated framework and that the State “is unaware what additional discovery Defendants specifically believe to be necessary,” the filing said.

No court ruling has been issued. The State asked the court to set oral arguments after additional discovery and briefing, which it proposed submitting in late December, the filings said. The filings also noted that Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann recently appointed Simmons to the Senate Select Committee on Redistricting and Reapportionment.

Source: Original Article