DPPJ takes step to hire special master selected by federal judge

MANSFIELD, La. -- The DeSoto Parish Police Jury will vote later this month on spending $46,000 to hire a special master selected by a federal judge to redraw the parish's election district lines.

The Police Jury's Budget and Finance Committee on Monday approved the fee for professional demographer services to be provided by Thomas A. Bryan of Montpelier, Va. The Police Jury will formally vote on the matter at its Aug. 20 meeting.

U.S. District Judge Jerry Edwards Jr. late last week selected Bryan from among three special master candidates. Bryan is on a timeline to submit a final plan and report by Oct. 15.

The selection stems from the remedial phase of a settlement in a federal lawsuit filed three years ago by a group of DeSoto Parish voters against the Police Jury. The voters alleged the Police Jury used race as the predominant factor when it redrew the parish's 11 election districts following the 2020 Census.

The parties agreed to pursue a settlement after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a Louisiana congressional redistricting case involving similar allegations.

Edwards ruled the Police Jury could no longer use its current district lines. He set up the process to select a third-party demographer to draw a new map and put tight guidelines for it to get done and approved before year's end. 

While Bryan has been tasked to do the job, interested parties can still submit proposed maps for review. The deadline to get those to him is Aug. 15. 

Bryan is expected to submit a proposed map by Sept. 15. Interested parties have until Sept. 30 to file responses. His final plan and report are due Oct. 15, with responses due by Oct. 30. Edwards said he expects to issue an order adopting Bryan's recommendations, or a modified version of them, by Dec. 15.