Wisconsin: Costs, number of deleted files pile up in redistricting case [View all]

[Scuba]

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/costs-number-of-deleted-files-pile-up-in-redistricting-case/article_51f15cb1-eb07-51f9-893d-67e8e6ec68c3.html

New federal court filings allege that legislative aides appear to have deleted “hundreds of thousands” of files at “suspicious times” from state computers used by Republicans in redistricting.

The plaintiffs in a case that challenged the redistricting law are asking the Legislature or attorneys representing the state to start paying for the forensic investigation. They say the probe has racked up nearly $100,000 in costs so far, fueled largely by the complexity of restoring deleted files. The filings are part of a post-trial investigation ordered by the three-judge federal panel that heard the redistricting case. A final report on the investigation is due May 10.

The main case was resolved last year with only minor changes to two legislative districts in the Milwaukee area to protect the rights of Hispanic voters.

But soon after the case ended, the plaintiffs, including Voces de la Frontera, several individuals and three Democratic members of Congress, alleged the state’s lawyers had not turned over all of the material subpoenaed as part of the case.
Finding that “fraud, misrepresentation or misconduct” likely occurred, the judges ordered a post-trial investigation into the missing records. In February, the panel ordered the state to turn over three redistricting computers that had been housed at the Madison office of the Michael, Best and Friedrich law firm.