Congressional redistricting map foes fight attempt to shield Florida lawmakers – Action News Jax

Opponents of a congressional redistricting plan pushed via the Legislature by Gov. Ron DeSantis are combating an effort to shield key lawmakers from testifying in a constitutional problem to the plan.

Attorneys for voting-rights teams and different plaintiffs urged a choose this week to reject a request by six lawmakers and 5 present and former legislative workers members for a protecting order that might stop depositions.

In a doc filed Monday, attorneys for the plaintiffs targeted, partially, on a Florida Supreme Court determination that led to lawmakers testifying in authorized battles after the 2012 redistricting course of. Information emerged throughout the 2012 litigation about behind-the-scenes roles that Republican political operatives performed in serving to draw maps.

The plaintiffs’ attorneys urged Leon County Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh to reject the “attempt to obstruct plaintiffs’ ability to obtain highly relevant and critical discovery in this case by moving to quash depositions of a specific subset of legislators and staff who were central to the redistricting process. The trial court and the Florida Supreme Court required similarly situated individuals to provide such testimony in the last redistricting cycle, and this court should do the same.”

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The Republican-controlled Legislature handed the congressional redistricting plan throughout an April particular session. The plan, which is in impact for the Nov. 8 elections, may add as many as 4 Republicans to the state’s congressional delegation.

The opponents filed the lawsuit in April, alleging that the plan violates a 2010 “Fair Districts” constitutional modification, which set requirements for the once-a-decade reapportionment course of. The lawsuit names as defendants Secretary of State Cord Byrd, the Senate and the House, although particular person legislators have been dismissed as defendants.

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Attorneys for the House and Senate on Oct. 10 filed a movement in search of to block the depositions of House Speaker Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor; Sen. Aaron Bean, a Fernandina Beach Republican who’s a prime lieutenant to Senate President Wilton Simpson; Senate Reapportionment Chairman Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero; Senate Congressional Reapportionment Chairwoman Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island; House Redistricting Chairman Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach; and House Congressional Redistricting Chairman Tyler Sirois, R-Merritt Island. Also, the movement seeks to shield present and former workers members together with House Chief of Staff Mat Bahl.

The Legislature’s movement contended, partially, that the lawmakers and workers members are shielded by “legislative privilege.”

“The legislative privilege — rooted in the Florida Constitution’s separation of powers — protects the legislative process from inhibition and interference and yields only in the most exceptional circumstances,” stated the movement filed by attorneys from the Shutts & Bowen and GrayRobinson legislation companies. “The facts presented in this case do not support the extraordinary intrusion that plaintiffs propose to make upon a co-equal branch of government.”

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The movement additionally cited what is named the “apex doctrine,” which typically prevents depositions of high-ranking officers if information will be obtained in different methods. The movement stated the doctrine applies to the lawmakers and Bahl.

In the doc filed Monday, attorneys for the plaintiffs disputed that legislative privilege or the apex doctrine ought to shield lawmakers.

“In (a ruling in the 2012 litigation), which is binding on this court, the Florida Supreme Court already decided that the compelling interest in vindicating the Fair Districts amendments outweighs the purposes of the qualified legislative privilege that might otherwise shield legislators from the discovery process in a normal civil case,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys wrote.

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Also, they accused the Legislature of making an attempt to decelerate the case in order that the disputed redistricting plan can stay in impact for the 2024 elections.

“Movants’ (the lawmakers and staff members) resistance should be recognized for what it is: an effort to run out the clock, or at least delay plaintiffs’ access to discovery long enough to preclude relief in time for the next election cycle,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys wrote. “Neither law nor equity supports their claim.”

Litigation about 2012 redistricting plans in the end led to the Legislature redrawing congressional and state Senate maps. Districts ordinarily are redrawn each 10 years after the U.S. census.

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DeSantis performed an unusually massive position on this yr’s congressional redistricting course of, with lawmakers accepting a plan he proposed throughout the particular session. In half, the plan has been controversial as a result of it’s anticipated to cut back the variety of Black U.S. House members.

As the House and Senate search to stop the depositions, DeSantis’ administration is also making an attempt to block the discharge of a variety of paperwork to plaintiffs within the case. The administration in September sought a protecting order, contending that the paperwork are shielded by legislative and “executive” privilege — a rivalry that the plaintiffs dispute.

Marsh has scheduled a listening to Thursday.

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