Like House Districts: The Costs to Taxpayers of Redistricting Litigation Seems to Have No Boundaries

News NM note (Spence) Lawyers will be slurping at the trough again today when they march into court funded by, you guessed it, New Mexico taxpayers. In the latest round of litigation that first and foremost lines the pockets of attorneys, yet another legal venue will hear arguements about House district boundary lines drawn by retired Judge James Hall last month after countless hours of testimony from all parties. It came as no surprise that the first bill passed by Democrats in the legislature in the just ended 30 day session had a provision to provide money for the state to sue itself. Leading the charge to gobble up what the state appropriated to fund the latest legal fight is lawyer and House member Brian Egolf of Santa Fe, who seems to have nothing better to do.
Albuquerque Journal - Lawyers for Democratic State Rep. Brian Egolf of Santa Fe and four other parties to redistricting proceedings in state court have asked to intervene in the redistricting challenge filed in federal court Monday by Republicans.
The intervenor-defendants are seeking for the federal lawsuit to be dismissed. The three-judge panel named late Thursday to hear the case, 10th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Harris Hartz, Chief U.S. District Judge Bruce Black and U.S. District Judge William P. Johnson, set a hearing for 1:30 p.m. today in the case.
“They’ve essentially filed a friendly lawsuit where you sue yourself and agree with yourself,” attorney Ray Vargas Jr., who represents the intervenors, said of the federal complaint. “Unfortunately, they did not bring any people who don’t agree with them into the suit. We believe as real parties in interest we have a place at the table.”
Vargas said the Egolf parties sought to participate in the lawsuit “to try to give effect to the Supreme Court’s order.”  Read full story here (subscription required): News New Mexico

Like House Districts: The Costs to Taxpayers of Redistricting Litigation Seems to Have No Boundaries