No timetable for ruling on district lines

A Nassau State Supreme Court Justice on Monday gave Democrats and Republicans who are battling over the county legislature's new district lines until Friday to make their final arguments.

While Justice Steven Jaeger promised a decision on whether the new Republican-drawn lines will stand or not, he did not give a date.

The new boundaries, proposed by Republicans and passed 11-8 along party lines in May, are being challenged by the legislature's Democratic minority. They claim the lines disenfranchise minorities and violate the county charter.

A separate civil rights case has been filed in U.S. District Court in Central Islip, charging that the new lines disenfranchise minority voters.

Jaeger's directive followed a vote Monday in the legislature's Rules Committee, which approved along party lines corrections to the new district boundary lines that the county board of elections said were needed.

County Attorney John Ciampoli, the primary author of the new lines, noted that candidates' nominating petitions are due to be filed by Thursday, and predicted the new lines would go into effect in time. "These are the lines that candidates will run on," he said.

The new lines would be used for the first time in November's county legislative races.

But Tom Garry, the lawyer for the Democratic Commissioner of the Board of Elections said: "It is impossible for the Nassau County Board of Elections to conduct an election based on the lines just adopted by a committee today and that need to be approved by the full legislature."

Legislative Minority Leader Diane Yatauro (D-Glen Cove) added, "the Republicans admitted today to major problems with those lines that needed to be corrected. The old lines are in place until correct new lines are set, and that will be too late for this upcoming election in November. If Mr. Ciampoli is so sure about winning, why are his candidates getting petitions for both sets of lines?"

With Celeste Hadrick