Local News in Brief : Dismissal of Latino District Suit Sought

Los Angeles County officials formally sought the dismissal Wednesday of the federal lawsuit that accuses them of violating the voting rights of Latinos in the 1981 drawing of supervisorial districts.

County lawyers, replying to discrimination charges leveled in the federal complaint, filed a response in U.S. District Court agreeing with the Justice Department that no Latino or other minority member has ever been elected to the five-member Board of Supervisors. But they disputed contentions that the redistricting plan adopted in 1981 is unconstitutional.

The Justice Department lawsuit, filed earlier this month, accuses the board of weakening the political strength of the county’s 2 million Latinos by scattering them over several districts rather than forming a district that would enhance the election possibility of Latino candidates.

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California have filed similar lawsuits alleging discrimination against Latinos. The county had responded earlier to that suit, denying the charges.