U.S. Accuses County of Reapportionment Bias : Justice Dept. Intends to File Suit Over 1981 Reshaping of Board of Supervisors Districts

The Justice Department has informed Los Angeles County officials that it intends to file a voting rights lawsuit alleging racial discrimination in the 1981 reapportionment of supervisorial districts, The Times learned Wednesday.

The move could reshape the Board of Supervisors. A Justice Department lawsuit would be similar to one filed in 1985 that forced the Los Angeles City Council to shift a district from suburban San Fernando Valley to the heavily Latino Eastside. That led to the election of former state Assemblywoman Gloria Molina.

A Justice Department spokeswoman confirmed that a letter written by Assistant Atty. Gen. William Bradford Reynolds was sent last week to the Los Angeles county counsel, but she refused to disclose the contents.

Lawsuit Authorized

However, other sources said Reynolds, who heads the civil rights division, informed the county that he has authorized the Justice Department to file a lawsuit charging discrimination in the redrawing of supervisorial districts.

The Board of Supervisors is required to realign districts every 10 years and to divide the county population evenly. But in approving such a plan in 1981, the supervisors allegedly diluted the influence of minority groups, particularly Latinos, according to sources familiar with the Justice Department investigation.

When asked about the letter and its contents, board Chairman Deane Dana issued a statement through his press secretary.

“We are aware that county counsel has received a letter from the Department of Justice. He is reviewing it and will be advising the board. Until that process is complete, we will not have any comment beyond that,” Dana said.

County Counsel DeWitt Clinton did not return several telephone calls from The Times.

In response to questions from The Times, Deborah Burstion-Wade, the Justice Department’s deputy director of public affairs in Washington, confirmed that a letter had been written by Reynolds and sent last week to the county, but had no further comment.

The 1965 Voting Rights Act, which the Justice Department had used in filing a similar complaint two years ago against the city of Los Angeles’ redistricting plan, prohibits any practice that causes members of minority groups to have “less opportunity than other members to participate in the political process and to elect representatives of their choice.”

Allegation Against City

In that lawsuit, which forced the city to redraw the political boundaries for council districts, the Justice Department alleged that the city’s 1982 redistricting plan had discriminated against Latinos by scattering them over several districts and splintering their political influence.

Representatives of some of those same Latino groups who had helped the department build its case against the city said Wednesday that they believe the lawsuit against the city provided the impetus for the letter to the county. These representatives said they have also been interviewed over the last several months by federal investigators interested in the county’s 1981 reapportionment.

“It appears very strongly that the way those supervisorial lines were drawn that they clearly diluted the ability of Latino communities to exercise its influence,” said Alan Clayton, civil rights representative of the California State League of United Latin American Citizens.

Raul Nunez, president of the Los Angeles County Chicano Employees Assn., said Wednesday that he also understood that the Justice Department complaint would involve alleged discrimination against Latinos.

‘Welcome News’

“That would be welcome news,” he said. “We have always felt that the Latino community has been without power in that they have been fragmented, and they have not been able to exercise their voting ability.”

The letter from the Justice Department marks the latest in a series of county troubles involving minorities. Nunez’s organization was successful last year in persuading the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to file a complaint against the county for alleged discrimination in the hiring and promotion of Latinos in the county work force. And other minority organizations have filed similar complaints against county departments.

Before adopting its redistricting plan in 1981, the board--which was made up of the five current members--had rejected another proposal that would have created two inner-city supervisorial districts that would have enhanced the chances of a board member from the minority community. One district would have combined a number of blacks and Latinos while another district would have contained a Latino majority.

But the plan, which ran into fierce opposition from board members, was turned down. In the county’s 138-year history, there have been no Latino supervisors and only one black--Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, who was appointed to the board but who later lost an election to retain her seat.

There were more than 2 million Latinos among the county’s 7.5-million population and 943,000 blacks, according to the 1980 Census. By 1985, those numbers had jumped to 2.4 million Latinos and 964,000 blacks, according to projections by the Department of Health Services.

But in the county’s supervisorial districts, most of the blacks are concentrated in Supervisor Kenneth Hahn’s 2nd District--which includes South-Central Los Angeles--and the largest number of Latinos are in Supervisor Ed Edelman’s 3rd District--which includes the unincorporated areas of East Los Angeles. Other districts, particularly Pete Schabarum’s 1st District stretching into the San Gabriel Valley and Mike Antonovich’s 5th District that includes the San Fernando Valley, also have sizable Latino communities.

Lawsuit, Consent Decree

Under the usual practice, even if Los Angeles County were to concede that there was discrimination in its redistricting plan and chose to comply with the alleged shortcomings outlined by the Justice Department, a lawsuit would still be filed along with a consent decree. The decree would be an agreement by county officials that it would remedy the alleged discrimination.

With the 1990 census so near, it is unclear whether the county could persuade a judge to delay taking immediate action requiring the county to change its political boundaries. But any move by the board would have widespread political ramifications.

Creating a district to improve representation of Latinos or blacks would likely jeopardize an incumbent’s candidacy or pit a board member against another supervisor in a newly drawn district. The other alternative could be to expand the board, a proposal that has been considered and rejected in the past.

“The most effective way for the county to respond to the Justice Department is to acknowledge that discrimination has occurred and to expand the board,” said Richard Martinez, director of field operations of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project.

“It would be very important if the Justice Department were able to show clear gerrymandering. It certainly would affect other counties in California,” Martinez said.

LATINO REPRESENTATION IN L. A. COUNTY L. A. County total population 7,952,682 L. A. County total Latino population 2,439,600 (31%) Supervisorial District No. 1 44% Supervisorial District No. 2 30% Supervisorial District No. 3 44% Supervisorial District No. 4 18% Supervisorial District No. 5 19%