Terry v. Adams, Civ. A. No. 1135.

• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (1st Circuit)
• Writing for the Court: KENNERLY
• Citation: 90 F. Supp. 595
• Parties: TERRY et al. v. ADAMS et al.
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 1135.
• Decision Date: 01 May 1950

90 F. Supp. 595

TERRY et al.
v.
ADAMS et al.

Civ. A. No. 1135.

United States District Court S. D. Texas, Galveston Division.

May 1, 1950.

90 F. Supp. 596

Allen, Smith, Neal & Lehmann (J. Edwin Smith), of Houston, Texas, for plaintiffs.

Townes & Townes (E. E. Townes and Edgar E. Townes, Jr.), and Clarence I. McFarlane, of Houston, Texas; D. R. Peareson, of Richmond, Texas, for defendants.

KENNERLY, Chief Judge.

This is a suit by John Terry, et al., citizens and residents of Fort Bend County, in this District and Division (for brevity called Plaintiffs), against A. J. Adams, et al., also residents and citizens of Fort Bend County (for brevity called Defendants). Defendants are sued individually and as representatives of the governing body of the Jaybird Democratic Association of Fort Bend County (for brevity called Association), commonly known, and described by Plaintiffs, as the Jaybird Party.

Such Association is a political organization or party. About April, May, or June of each election year, it holds a primary election or elections (called for brevity Jaybird Primary) to determine to what persons such Association will give its endorsement for County and Precinct Officers in Fort Bend County to be voted on in the Democratic Primaries to be held the following July and August. No Negro is allowed to vote in such Jaybird Primary. Plaintiffs, "who are Negroes and qualified voters in such County, bring this suit for themselves and others similarly situated, seeking a Decree declaring that they are legally entitled to vote in such Jaybird Primary, for damages in the sum of Five

90 F. Supp. 597

Thousand Dollars for being deprived of such right, and enjoining Defendants from refusing to allow them to vote. Particularly they pray that Defendants be enjoined from refusing to allow them to vote in the Jaybird Primaries of May 6, 1950, and June 3, 1950. Defendants have filed a Motion to Dismiss and have Answered, and this is a hearing on such Motion and a trial on the merits

(a) Counsel for the parties have signed a Stipulation, which was offered by Defendants, which so well states the history and purpose of such Association that I quote it as follows: —

"The matters herein contained are not stipulated by Plaintiffs in the above cause within the sense that Plaintiffs agree thereto but it is agreed that the matters set forth in the following paragraphs may be read by Defendants on any trial or hearing of this cause, as Defendants statements with reference to said matters, the same as though each of said matters hereinafter set forth were introduced into evidence by testimony of witnesses testifying personally; and the Plaintiffs make no objection to the reading of the following paragraphs:

"In seeking to understand the Jaybird Democratic Association of Fort Bend County, Texas, it is necessary to keep in mind conditions throughout the South during the so-called Reconstruction Period, and particularly in those localities like Fort Bend County where the Negroes greatly outnumbered the whites. In the registration of voters from May to September 1867 there were admitted to registry 153 white voters and 1334 colored voters in the county. The State was placed under military rule; county officials were appointed and removed at will under military authority. When military control was discontinued, county and precinct offices were held over by the group theretofore in control, most of the white members of which had come into the county after the War. The colored people, only recently freed, were controlled by the white newcomers.

"The result was a county government of dishonesty, corruption, graft and also of arrogance toward the native white citizens. The county officials were not interested in orderly honest government, the enforcement of law, the prevention of crime or its adequate punishment. The native white people tried by personal persuasion and by appeal, both to the white members of the ruling organization and also to the Negroes, to bring about some betterment of official conditions and conduct, but to no avail.

"Most, if not all, of the white people excluded from participation in voting or political affairs were Democrats. As time passed on and a greater percentage of the Democrats began to be permitted to vote, different groups among them sought to organize and support candidates for office, but without success.

"Finally the condition became so intolerable that the Democrats, joined perhaps by a few good Republican citizens, decided to organize an association of white citizens to be known as the `Jaybird Democratic Association of Fort Bend County', stating their object thus: `The object of this association shall be to secure to the people of Fort Bend County economic and honest county government and the election of honest and faithful county officials.' `Every bona fide white citizen of Fort Bend County shall be eligible to membership in this association.' This was in 1889.

"Throughout the years the membership of the association has, by some method, ascertained whom the majority of its members desired to support for various county and precinct offices. For a period, it determined the preference of its members at mass meetings of the membership, before which mass meetings were placed the names of those who desired to seek office or whose friends desired to present and support them. Later the method was changed to a ballot voting system paralleling in general form and method the system set up by state law for political party government.

"Those candidates selected as preferred by the membership of the Association by whatever method was followed were advised of their selection. The news of the result of voting in the Association was spread by word of mouth, newspapers and any other available news channels.

90 F. Supp. 598

"With the announcement of the selection of the candidates preferred by the membership of the Association, the organization's connection with the matter terminated."

(b) Another Stipulation of Facts was signed and filed by Counsel for the parties. It is quite lengthy and it seems unnecessary to copy it herein. It is referred to and made a part hereof. Briefly stated, the facts as set forth in the Stipulation and shown by the evidence are as follows: —

(c) The four persons named as Defendants herein are officers of such Association. Such Association is governed by an Executive Committee of twenty-two persons,...