New Orleans asks U.S. Supreme Court to review clerk case

What New Orleans is asking

The City of New Orleans filed a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Louisiana Supreme Court ruling involving the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court clerk’s office. The request challenges the state court’s decision to uphold Act 15 after an election for that office had already taken place.

Act 15 abolished the elected criminal court clerk’s office and transferred its responsibilities to another officeholder. The state law merged the Criminal District Court clerk’s office with the Civil District Court clerk’s office. City officials contend that the change affected voters’ completed choice for the criminal court position.

The constitutional dispute

The city’s petition raises claims under the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It asks whether a state legislature may void the result of a completed election and prevent voters from choosing the official who will perform the duties of a newly combined clerk’s office.

The city’s position is that the dispute involves federal protections for voters after ballots have been cast. Its petition seeks U.S. Supreme Court review of how those protections apply when a legislature abolishes an elected office and moves its duties after an election.

The Louisiana Supreme Court concluded that Act 15 did not establish a new position. Instead, it found that the law abolished the criminal court clerk’s position while combining court clerk functions.

What happens next

The next procedural question is whether the U.S. Supreme Court will agree to review the Louisiana Supreme Court’s decision. Review would allow the justices to consider the city’s 14th Amendment arguments concerning the completed election and the transfer of the clerk’s duties.