Day et al. v. Robinwood

The ACLU-EM filed suit on behalf of fourteen voters in the Robinwood West Community Improvement District, who claimed that voting standards in the district violated the Equal Protection Clause.

ST. LOUIS, November 3, 2009 - United States District Judge Richard Webber yesterday found that the 2008 election held by Robinwood West Community Improvement District, a small political subdivision located in unincorporated St. Louis County, was unconstitutional and that the Missouri Legislature’s imposition of greater restrictions on certain voters violates the Equal Protection Clause.

The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri on behalf of fourteen voters in the Community Improvement District. The voters claimed that Missouri’s statute governing elections for residential community improvement districts violated the Equal Protection Clause because voters were held to different standards before being allowed to cast a ballot. In addition, the voters asserted that the manner in which the community improvement district conducted its 2008 election violated the Equal Protection Clause. In the 2008 election, some voters were given one ballot while other voters were allowed to cast two or more ballots. The court agreed on both points.

Judge Webber held, “[T]he Equal Protection Clause demands that Defendant allow all qualified voters to vote for directors on equal terms. … [P]ermitting certain District landowners to cast multiple votes in board elections violates the one person, one vote guarantee of the Equal Protection Clause.”

“It is a fundamental rule of democracy that each voter gets an equal say in who will represent them in government,” said Brenda Jones, executive director of the ACLU of Eastern Missouri. “We applaud the court’s resolve to re-instate equal voting rights in Missouri.”

The decision came on the voters’ motion for summary judgment. In April, the court issued a preliminary injunction directing the community improvement district to allow no more than one ballot to each qualified voter.

The case, Day et al. v. Robinwood West Community Improvement District, is pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The residents are represented by ACLU of Eastern Missouri legal director Anthony E. Rothert and cooperating attorney Daniel R. Kuehnert of St. Louis.

The court’s decision is available for viewing below.