Jeffrey M. Wice, of counsel to SRYL, has coauthored an article in the newest Election Law Journal (Volume 2, Number 4). “Court Deference to State Legislatures in Redistricting After Perry v. Perez” analyzes the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Perry v. Perez in the context of competing precedents, surveys post-Perry redistricting cases, and considers Perry’s implications for the future. The article provides a framework for issues to be considered when state legislatures (and other redistricting authorities) fail to redistrict or when courts are faced with redrawing redistricting plans found to violate federal, state or local law.
Jeff Wice was featured in an article in Newsday about a Fair Redistricting Initiative in Brookhaven, NY. For the first time, districts for the Brookhaven Town Council is using a bipartisan redistricting commission consisting of three registered Democrats, three registered Republicans, and two non-partisans to re-draw districts for Brookhaven’s Town Council seats. The council is the first of its kind to be utilized at the local level in New York state.
Mr. Wice is serving the commission as a general counsel, which begins hearings on the redistricting process next week: “We’ve seen what hasn’t worked so far,” Wice said of this census cycle’s other redistricting efforts. “This might be an exception.”