Kapral v. Jepson
| Decision Date | 31 May 1967 |
| Docket Number | Civ. No. 11470. |
| Citation | 271 F. Supp. 74 |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Connecticut |
| Parties | Andrew KAPRAL et al., Plaintiffs, v. Alan H. JEPSON et al., Defendants. |
COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED
Robert I. Berdon and David D. Berdon, of Berdon, Berdon & Young, New Haven, Conn., for plaintiffs.
Stephen I. Traub, of Lynch & Traub, New Haven, Conn., and Dennis F. Harrigan, Milford, Conn., for defendants.
Plaintifffs' motion for partial summary judgment, pursuant to Rule 56, Fed.R.Civ.P., in this action seeking declaratory and injunctive relief with respect to the districting of the Board of Aldermen of the City of Milford, presents essentially the following questions:
The Court holds that each of the foregoing questions should be answered in the affirmative; but with respect to question (3), it does so with reluctance.
The material facts, as well as the conclusions of law, necessary to a determination of the instant motion for summary judgment are not in dispute. The Court, accordingly, makes the following findings of fact and conclusions of law pursuant to Rule 52, Fed.R.Civ.P.
1. Plaintiffs, suing for themselves and other Milford voters similarly situated, are, and at least since November 1, 1965 have been, residents and qualified voters in the City of Milford, and more particularly are residents and qualified voters in the following aldermanic voting districts of the City of Milford:
2. Defendants are elected officials of the City of Milford, as follows:
Defendants are sued in their official capacities and particularly with respect to their duties relating to the holding of elections to the Board of Aldermen, certifying the results of such elections, altering by ordinance the boundaries of voting districts and holding office under the Charter of the City of Milford.
3. The City of Milford, although not a party to this action,1 is a municipal corporation and a political subdivision of the State of Connecticut. It is governed by the General Statutes of the State of Connecticut and by Special Act No. 139, enacted by the Connecticut General Assembly in 1959 and entitled "An Act Concerning A Charter For The City of Milford," (hereinafter the "Charter"), revised effective January 1, 1964 pursuant to the Home Rule Act. Conn. Gen. Stat. § 7-187, et seq. (1958), as amended, (Supp.1966).
4. The Court takes judicial notice of all provisions of the Charter which govern the election of members of the Board of Aldermen, including the following:
5. The Court takes judicial notice of all provisions of the General Statutes and of the Charter which vest legislative powers in the Board of Aldermen, including the provisions of Article III, Section 6, of the Charter.
6. By ordinance adopted by the Board of Aldermen, the City of Milford is presently divided into five voting districts the territorial boundaries of which are more particularly described in Section 2-1 of the Code of the City of Milford. From each of these five voting districts, three aldermen are elected to a Board of fifteen.
7. The boundaries of the voting districts were established many years ago, some having been established by the General Assembly in 1931.
8. Based upon the 1960 census taken by the Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce, each of the five voting districts contains the following population, agreed upon by counsel as being substantially correct:
First District - 9,305
Second District - 6,279
Third District - 7,593
Fourth District - 11,374
Fifth District - 7,111
_______
41,662
9. The population figures of each of the five voting districts are no less disproportionate today than in 1960.
10. Based on the 1960 population of the City of Milford, the norm for each of the voting districts is 8,332. The most populous district (the Fourth with 11,374 inhabitants) has a population of 3,042 more than the norm, indicating a deviation of 36.5% from the norm. The least populous district (the Second with 6,279 inhabitants) has a population of 2,053 less than the norm, indicating a deviation of 24.6% from the norm. The disparity between the most populous district and the least populous district is in a ratio of approximately 2:1. Even though the population figures upon which these deviations are based are figures upon which counsel have agreed as being substantially, rather than exactly, correct, the deviations from the norm are sufficiently great to obviate the necessity of having more exact population figures. A majority of the Board of Aldermen may be elected by 41.3% of the total City population.
11. No currently relevant reason is to be found in the record or is known to the Court to justify such a wide population disparity between the five voting districts.
12. Pursuant to the provisions of the Charter and the Code referred to in paragraphs 4 and 6 above, three aldermen from each of the five voting districts were elected November 2, 1965 to serve until November 13, 1967 or until their successors have qualified. The fifteen aldermen thus elected took office November 9, 1965 and are included among the defendants named herein.
13. The Court takes judicial notice that the City of Milford is a growing community as reflected in the following decennial census figures:
Year Population
1940 - 16,439
1950 - 26,870
1960 - 41,662
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. The complaint sets forth a justiciable controversy between the parties over which the Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, 1988 and 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3) and (4).
2. Plaintiffs are persons residing in municipal legislative districts having less representation than they are entitled to, are properly representative of the class in behalf of which they sue and have standing to maintain this action.
3. Defendants are the principal persons charged with responsibilities relating to the holding of elections to the Board of Aldermen and certifying the results of such elections; and the defendant members of the Board of Aldermen have the authority under the Charter of the City of Milford to alter the boundaries of the voting districts of the City so as to permit election of members of the Board of Aldermen on a basis which will comport with federal constitutional requirements.
4. The present districting of the Board of Aldermen so debases the voting rights of plaintiffs as to result in an invidious discrimination against plaintiffs who thereby are denied the equal protection of the laws in contravention of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.
5. So much of Section 2-1 of the Code of the City of Milford which, in establishing boundaries for the voting districts in the City of Milford, results in a wide population disparity between the voting districts as a basis for election of members of the Board of Aldermen, being in contravention of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, is void and of no effect.
6. So much of Article II, Section 4, of the Charter of the City of Milford as provides that each voting district shall contain " . . . as nearly as possible an equal number of electors . . .", to the extent that said provision imposes limitations upon equality of population between the voting districts as a basis for election of members of the Board of Aldermen, being in contravention of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, is void and of no effect.
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