September, 02 2010, 10:02am EDT
ACLU Asks Supreme Court To Review Case Concerning South Dakota Elections System That Dilutes The American Indian Vote
WASHINGTON
The
American Civil Liberties Union petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court late
yesterday to review a case concerning an elections system that dilutes
the American Indian vote in the city of Martin, South Dakota.
In the petition, the ACLU argues that
a redistricting plan, adopted by the city in 2002, prevents American
Indian voters from having an equal opportunity to participate in the
political process and elect representatives of their choice in violation
of the Voting Rights Act.
In May 2010, the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, in a divided 7-4 opinion issued by the
full panel of judges, declined to block the city's elections system,
prompting today's petition.
American Indians make up
approximately 45 percent of the city of Martin's population but the
redistricting plan ensures that white voters control all three city
council districts.
The following can be attributed to Bryan Sells, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Voting Rights Project:
"Everyone deserves an equal voice in
the selection of city officials, but under the city of Martin's
redistricting plan, American Indian voters who make up almost half of
the city's voting population effectively have no voice in their
government. We hope that our nation's highest court will rectify the
discriminatory elections system so that a remedial plan that promotes
fairness and a more democratic city government can be put in place."
Attorneys on the case include Sells,
Laughlin McDonald and Steven R. Shapiro of the ACLU and Patrick K. Duffy
of Rapid City, South Dakota.
A copy of the petition is available online at:www.aclu.org/voting-rights/cottier-v-city-martin-et-al-petition-writ-certiorari
The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
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