Counties’ amicus brief accepted by court

Action was taken in response to May 2018 lawsuit regarding proposed congressional redistricting

The Lake and Geauga county commissioners last month filed an amicus “friend of the court” brief regarding proposed redistricting and now it has been accepted by a federal court.

The brief was filed in response to a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court in Cincinnati last May by the Ohio A. Philip Randolph Institute, the League of Women Voters of Ohio, the ACLU of Ohio and other groups, in addition to private citizens.

The suit, which claims gerrymandering, seeks to change the current 14th Congressional District map prior to the 2020 election.

The existing district was created by Republican legislators in 2011.

Prior to the filing of the brief, commissioners from Lake, Geauga and Ashtabula counties held a press conference opposing the suggested redistricting.

The proposed plan, which is part of the lawsuit, would split Geauga County into two districts and remove Lake and Ashtabula counties from the current 14th District, placing them with Trumbull and a portion of Mahoning counties, including Youngstown.

The commissioners confirmed the current district has been in place almost continuously since the early 1950s.

Lake County Commissioner Jerry Cirino said the parties were late in the (filing) process and weren’t sure if the court would consider the contents of the brief.

“Obviously, they saw merit with a lot of good information to, in fact, consider it; they felt it was credible enough to be accepted,” he said. “They found our brief not only constructed properly but also the argument compelling enough to be considered in their deliberations.

“Hopefully, they are impressed with what we’ve presented to not have the current Congressional District 14 broken up.”

Lake County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney David Hackman added the joint filing of the brief excluded Ashtabula County.

“While Ashtabula didn’t participate in the filing, the commissioners did adopt a resolution,” Cirino said. “They are incorporated in the brief to keep the district together.”

Unless the judge requests further inquiries, no further activity is anticipated regarding the brief, Hackman said.