Crumly v. Cobb Cnty. Bd. of Elections
| Decision Date | 09 May 2012 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 1:12–CV–01301–SCJ. |
| Citation | 892 F.Supp.2d 1333 |
| Parties | Jonathan D. CRUMLY, Sr., Cobb County Board of Commissioners, Timothy D. Lee, Chairman, in his official capacity; George Woody Thompson., Jr., Commissioner, in his official capacity; Helen C. Goreham, Commissioner, in her official capacity; Robert J. Ott, Commissioner, in his official capacity; and Joann K. Birrell, Commissioner in her official capacity, Plaintiffs, v. COBB COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS AND VOTER REGISTRATION; Janine Everler, Director, in her official capacity, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Joseph Blackshear Atkins, Office of Cobb County Attorney, Marietta, GA, for Cobb County Board of Commissioners, George Woody Thompson, Jr., Helen C. Goreham, JoAnn K. Birrell, Robert J. Ott and Timothy D. Lee.
Jonathan Dean Crumly, Maner Crumley Chambliss, LLP, Atlanta, GA, for Jonathan D. Crumly, Sr.
Jefferson Moseley Jeter, Jefferson Jeter, Attorney at Law, Atlanta, GA, for Viveca R. Famber–Powell.
Gregg Earl Litchfield, Haynie Litchfield & Crane, Marietta, GA, for Cobb County Board of Elections and Voter Registration and Janine Everler.
This case involves the reapportionment of the electoral commission districts for the voters of Cobb County, Georgia. The case appears before the Court on a Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief against the Cobb County Board of Elections and Voter Registration, and its director, Janine Everler. Doc. No. 1.
This action was originally brought by Plaintiff Jonathan D. Crumly, Sr., against the Cobb County Board of Commissioners, each of the five commissioners named above in their official capacities, the Cobb County Board of Elections and Voter Registration and its Director, Janine Everler. Doc. No. 1.
In his Complaint, Plaintiff challenges the constitutionality of the current Cobb County Board of Commissioners districts under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and the Equal Protection Clauses of the United States and Georgia Constitutions. Plaintiff alleges that the present districts of the County Commission are so disproportionate in population that they violate the principle of “one person, one vote.” Doc. No. 1, p. 2. Plaintiff seeks declaratory and injunctive relief preventing the future use of Cobb County's Board of Commissioners districts. Id. Plaintiff also requests that the Court impose a remedial plan for use in the 2012 election cycle and in all future election cycles unless lawfully amended for elections after 2012. Id.
After the filing of the Complaint, upon motion of the Board of Commissioners and the individual commissioners (hereinafter collectively referred to as “Board of Commissioners”), the Court permitted realignment of the parties (based on their similar interests and goals in the present litigation) so that the board and its named commissioners were realigned as plaintiffs in this case. Doc. No. 37.
On April 27, 2012, the parties entered into a stipulation [Doc. No. 15] as to certain findings of fact and conclusions of law, which the Court will incorporate into its findings herein.
Cobb County, Georgia is a political subdivision of the State of Georgia and is governed by the Cobb County Board of Commissioners.
Plaintiffs Timothy D. Lee, Helen C. Goreham, Robert J. Ott, JoAnn K. Birrell, and George Woody Thompson, Jr. are members of the Cobb County Board of Commissioners. The Board's chairman, Timothy D. Lee is elected on an at-large basis by all voters in the County. For the purposes of electing the remaining four district commissioners, Cobb County is divided geographically into four single-member electoral districts. Each of the four district commissioners are required to reside in specific districts. Only the registered voters residing in the commissioner's district are eligible to vote for that commissioner's district seat. The residential addresses of the district commissioners are as follows:
Goreham: 3528 West Hampton Drive, N.W., Marietta, Georgia 30064
Ott: 1477 Pebble Creek Road, S.E., Marietta, Georgia 30067
Birrell: 1228 Nottoway Trail, N.E., Marietta, Georgia 30066
Plaintiff Jonathan D. Crumly, Sr. is a resident and elector of Cobb County, Georgia, who resides in Marietta, Georgia and votes in Commission District 1.
The Court has also granted Viveca R. Famber–Powell, who resides in Mableton, Georgia and votes in Commission District 2 amicus curiae status.1
The named defendants, the Cobb County Board of Elections and Registration and its director, Janine Everler, have the lawfulduty to: receive notices of candidacy and qualifying fees from candidates seeking election to the County Commission; prepare and publish all notices and advertisements in connection with the conduct of elections; transmit to the Secretary of State a copy of any publication in which a call for an election is issued; prepare, equip and furnish all polling places; conduct elections for the county; count all ballots; and certify the results of all elections as prescribed by law.
This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331, 1343(a)(3) and (4), and 2201. Venue is proper in this Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b).
As stated above, this case involves the “one person, one vote” constitutional principle. As evidenced by the most recent United States decennial census, due to material shifts in the populations within Cobb County's four Commission districts over the past decade, the number of citizens in each of the existing commissioner districts is not equal.
The County Commission districts, as currently configured, are accurately represented by the map at Exhibit 1, Doc. No. 15–1. These existing districts were drawn in 2002 by the Honorable Julie Carnes, Chief Judge of the Northern District of Georgia, under similar, expedited circumstances as the present case—that is because the Georgia Legislature had ended its regular session without redistricting Cobb County based on the population results of the 2000 Census. An equal protection civil action was filed in the United States District Court, Northern District of Georgia weeks prior to the qualification and election deadlines. Smith, Perry et al. v. Cobb County Board of Elections, et al., 314 F.Supp.2d 1274 (N.D.Ga.2002).2
According to the 2010 Census, the Board of Commissioners districts, as presently configured, contain approximately the following populations:
+----------------------+
¦DISTRICT ¦POPULATION¦
+-----------+----------¦
¦001 ¦196,029 ¦
+-----------+----------¦
¦002 ¦162,396 ¦
+-----------+----------¦
¦003 ¦155,256 ¦
+-----------+----------¦
¦004 ¦174,463 ¦
+----------------------+
The four Cobb County Commission districts have not been reapportioned after the 2010 census. The population data for the Cobb County Commission districts from the 2010 Census shows a total population of 688,144 with a corresponding ideal population per district of 172,019 to avoid either diluting or increasing voting strength.3
The population data summary for the Board of Commissioners districts as presently configured is in the record at Exhibit 2, Doc. No. 15–2. The evaluation of this population data, broken down by district, results in the following deviations from the ideal population per district as presently configured:
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
¦DISTRICT¦POPULATION ¦IDEAL POPULATION ¦DEVIATION ¦DEVIATION PERCENTAGE ¦
+--------+------------+------------------+----------+-----------------------¦
¦001 ¦196,029 ¦172,019 ¦24,010 ¦14.0% ¦
+--------+------------+------------------+----------+-----------------------¦
¦002 ¦162,396 ¦172,019 ¦–9,623 ¦–5.6% ¦
+--------+------------+------------------+----------+-----------------------¦
¦003 ¦155,256 ¦172,019 ¦–16,763 ¦–9.7% ¦
+--------+------------+------------------+----------+-----------------------¦
¦004 ¦174,463 ¦172,019 ¦2,444 ¦1.4% ¦
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
The overall population deviation is 23.70%. In addition, the voting strength of voters in District 1 is significantly diluted, while voters in District 3 have a disproportionately large voting strength. As a result, the existing Board of Commissioners districts are unconstitutionally malapportioned.
The Georgia General Assembly is the only legislative body with the duty and authority to reapportion the County Commission districts during a regular or special session.4 During the 2012 regular session of the Georgia General Assembly, several members of the Cobb delegation to the Georgia House of Representatives submitted House Bill 905 (“HB 905”) in an effort to redistrict the Cobb County Commission districts such that the malapportionment evident from the 2010 census data would be resolved. HB 905 passed out of the Georgia House of Representatives on February 21, 2012. HB 905 did not pass out of the Georgia Senate without amendment. A copy of HB 905 as passed by the Georgia House is found in the record at Exhibit 3, Doc. No. 15–3. The County Commission districts, as configured in HB 905 (the “HB 905 Plan”), are accurately represented by the map at Exhibit 4, Doc. No. 15–4. The configurations of the HB 905 Plan contain approximately the following populations:
The population data for the HB 905 Plan from the 2010 Census shows a total population of 688,078 with a corresponding ideal population per district of 172,019 to avoid either diluting or increasing voting strength. The population data summary for the HB 905 Plan is in the record at Exhibit 5, Doc. No. 15–5. The evaluation of this population data broken down by district results in the following deviations from the ideal population per district as presently...
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