Judicial District Boundary Law in Louisiana: 1975

ACT No. 13
Senate Bill No. 132. By: Mr. Nunez and Representatives
Patti and Rowley.
AN ACT
To amend and as amended to arrange in proper statutory form and incorporate into the statutes the provisions of Article VII, Section 31 of the Constitution of 1921, continued as a statute by Article XIV, Section 16(A)(5) of the Constitution of 1974, by amending Title 13 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 to add thereto a new Section, to be designated as R.S. 13:477, relative to the judicial districts of the state, to divide the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District by the establishment of the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District to be composed of St. Bernard Parish with the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District to continue and be composed of Plaquemines Parish; to provide for a referendum election to submit to the electors of the existing Twenty-Fifth Judicial District a proposition for their approval or disapproval thereof; to provide for the election of a district attorney for the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District; to provide for the effective date of the division of the existing Twenty-Fifth Judicial District and the establishment of the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District, to provide for divisions of each court over which the judges shall preside and to which successors shall be elected, to provide for the effectiveness of the Act and matters generally and specifically related to the division of the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District and the establishment of the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District.
Notice of intention to introduce this Act has been published as provided by Article III, Section 13 of the Constitution of Louisiana.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
Section 1. Article VII, Section 31 of the Constitution of 1921, continued as a statute by Article XIV, Section 16(A)(5) of the Constitution of 1974, is hereby amended and reenacted and continued as a new Section of Title 13 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, to be designated as R.S. 13:477, which is hereby enacted to read as follows:
§477. Judicial districts
A. There shall be thirty-four judicial districts in the state, the parish of Orleans excepted, and each district shall be composed as follows:
(1) The parish of Caddo shall compose the First District.
(2) The parishes of Jackson, Claiborne, and Bienville shall compose the Second District.
(3) The parishes of Lincoln and Union shall compose the Third District.
(4) The parishes of Ouachita and Morehouse shall compose the Fourth District.
(5) The parishes of West Carroll, Richland, and Franklin shall compose the Fifth District.
(6) The parishes of East Carroll, Madison, and Tensas shall compose the Sixth District.
(7) The parishes of Catahoula and Concordia shall compose the Seventh District.
(8) The parishes of Grant and Winn shall compose the Eighth District.
(9) The parish of Rapides shall compose the Ninth District.
(10) The parishes of Natchitoches and Red River shall compose the Tenth District.
(11) The parishes of DeSoto and Sabine shall compose the Eleventh District.
(12) The parish of Avoyelles shall compose the Twelfth District.
(13) The parish of Evangeline shall compose the Thirteenth District.
(14) The parishes of Calcasieu and Cameron shall compose the Fourteenth District.
(15) The parishes of Acadia, Lafayette, and Vermilion shall compose the Fifteenth District.
(16) The parishes of St. Mary, Iberia, and St. Martin shall compose the Sixteenth District.
(17) The parish of Lafourche shall compose the Seventeenth District.
(18) The parishes of Iberville, West Baton Rouge, and Pointe Coupee shall compose the Eighteenth District.
(19) The parish of East Baton Rouge shall compose the Nineteenth District.
(20) The parishes of East Feliciana and West Feliciana shall compose the Twentieth District.
(21) The parishes of Tangipahoa, Livingston, and St. Helena shall compose the Twenty-First District.
(22) The parishes of Washington and St. Tammany shall compose the Twenty-Second District.
(23) The parishes of Assumption, Ascension, and St. James shall compose the Twenty-Third District.
(24) The parish of Jefferson shall compose the Twenty-Fourth District.
(25) The parish of Plaquemines shall compose the Twenty-Fifth District.
(26) The parishes of Bossier and Webster shall compose the Twenty-Sixth District.
(27) The parish of St. Landry shall compose the Twenty-Seventh District.
(28) The parishes of LaSalle and Caldwell shall compose the Twenty-Eighth District.
(29) The parishes of St. John the Baptist and St. Charles shall compose the Twenty-Ninth District.
(30) The parishes of Beauregard and Vernon shall compose the Thirtieth District.
(31) The parish of Jefferson Davis shall compose the Thirty-First District.
(32) The parish of Terrebonne shall compose the Thirty-Second District.
(33) The parish of Allen shall compose the Thirty-Third District.
(34) The parish of St. Bernard shall compose the Thirty-Fourth District.
Section 2. The governor shall, within fifteen days after the effective date of this Section, call a special election to be held on the second Saturday of February, 1976, for the following purpose:
To submit to a vote of the electors of the existing Twenty-Fifth Judicial District, being the parishes of Plaquemines and St. Bernard, for their approval or disapproval, as provided in Section 15 of Article V of the Louisiana Constitution, the following proposition, in substantially the following form:
FOR the proposition that the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District be divided, effective January 1, 1979, by the establishment of the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District composed of St. Bernard Parish, and continuing the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District composed of Plaquemines Parish as provided by Act __ of the 1975 Regular Session of the Legislature.
AGAINST the proposition that the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District be divided, effective January 1, 1979, by the establishment of the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District composed of St. Bernard Parish, and continuing the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District composed of Plaquemines Parish as provided by Act -of the 1975 Regular Session of the Legislature.
The secretary of state shall fill in the number of this Act in the propositions.
The special election provided for in this Section shall be conducted in accordance with law by the election officials and personnel who conduct general elections.
Section 3. If the proposition submitted to the electors as is provided for in Section 2 of this Act is approved by the electors:
(1) The Twenty-Fifth and the Thirty-Fourth Judicial Districts shall on and after January 1, 1979, be composed as is provided in Section 1 of this Act.
(2) The judges of the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District Court shall continue to serve as judges for said district, as such district exists until January 1, 1979, and until their present terms expire. At the next regular election for judges throughout the state to be held in 1978 to take office on January 1, 1979, there shall be elected judges for Divisions A and B of the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District, composed of the Parish of Plaquemines, and judges for Divisions A and B of the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District, composed of the Parish of St. Bernard, and thereafter the judges for these judicial districts shall be elected at the same time and in the same manner as is provided by law for the election of judges of district courts throughout the state. The district attorney for the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District shall continue to serve as district attorney for that district until his present term expires. At the next regular election for district attorneys throughout the State to be held in 1978 to take office on January 1, 1979, there shall be elected a district attorney for the Twenty-Fifth Judicial District, composed of the Parish of Plaquemines, and a district attorney for the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District, composed of the Parish of St. Bernard, and thereafter the district attorneys for these districts shall be elected at the same time and in the same manner as is provided by law for the election of district judges and district attorneys throughout the state.
Section 4. In the event more than one judicial district is created by authority of legislation passed at the 1975 Regular Session of the Legislature, and two or more of such newly created districts are designated by the same number, the secretary of state is hereby authorized and directed to assign consecutive numbers to the newly created judicial districts, commencing with the Thirty-Fourth Judicial District, and to properly designate on the ballot provided for in Section 2 of this Act the number of the new district created under the provisions of this Act.
Section 5. The provisions of Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of this Act shall become effective upon signature by the governor or, if not signed or vetoed by the governor, upon expiration of the time for bills to become law without signature by the governor, as provided by Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution. The provisions of Section 1 of this Act shall take effect and become operative on January 1, 1979, if the proposition submitted to the electors as provided in Section 2 of this Act is approved by the electors. If the proposition is disapproved, the provisions of this Act shall expire and be null, void, and shall have no effect.
Section 6. If any provision or item of this Act or the application thereof is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions, items or applications of this Act which can be given effect without the invalid provisions, items or applications, and to this end the provisions of this Act are hereby declared severable.
Section 7. All laws or parts of laws in conflict herewith are hereby repealed.
Approved by the Governor: June 19, 1975.
Published in the Official Journal of the State: June 27, 1975.
A true copy:
WADE 0. MARTIN, JR.
Secretary of State.

ACT No. 728
House Bill No. 425. By: Mr. Drew.
AN ACT
To amend Title 13 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 by adding thereto as a new Section, to be designated as R.S. 13:477,
the provisions of Article VII, Section 31 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1921, which Article XIV, Section 16 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974 continues as a statute, relative to judicial districts and the composition thereof; and to express the intention of the Legislature in respect to other acts affecting judicial districts.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
Section 1. Section 477 of Title 13 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
§477. Judicial districts
There shall be thirty-three judicial districts in the state, the parish of Orleans excepted, and each district shall be composed as follows:
The parish of Caddo shall compose the First District.
The parishes of Jackson, Claiborne, and Bienville shall compose the Second District.
The parishes of Lincoln and Union shall compose the Third District.
The parishes of Ouachita and Morehouse shall compose the Fourth District.
The parishes of West Carroll, Richland, and Franklin shall compose the Fifth District.
The parishes of East Carroll, Madison, and Tensas shall compose the Sixth District.
The parishes of Catahoula and Concordia shall compose the Seventh District.
The parishes of Grant and Winn shall compose the Eighth District.
The parish of Rapides shall compose the Ninth District.
The parishes of Natchitoches and Red River shall compose the Tenth District.
The parishes of DeSoto and Sabine shall compose the Eleventh District.
The parish of Avoyelles shall compose the Twelfth District.
The parish of Evangeline shall compose the Thirteenth District.
The parishes of Calcasieu and Cameron shall compose the Fourteenth District.
The parishes of Acadia, Lafayette, and Vermilion shall compose the Fifteenth District.
The parishes of St. Mary, Iberia, and St. Martin shall compose the Sixteenth District.
The parish of Lafourche shall compose the Seventeenth District.
The parishes of Iberville, West Baton Rouge, and Pointe Coupee shall compose the Eighteenth District.
The parish of East Baton Rouge shall compose the Nineteenth District.
The parishes of East Feliciana and West Feliciana shall compose the Twentieth District.
The parishes of Tangipahoa, Livingston, and St. Helena shall compose the Twenty-First District.
The parishes of Washington and St. Tammany shall compose the Twenty-Second District.
The parishes of Assumption, Ascension, and St. James shall compose the Twenty-Third District.
The parish of Jefferson shall compose the Twenty-Fourth District.
The parishes of St. Bernard and Plaquemines shall compose the Twenty-Fifth District.
The parishes of Bossier and Webster shall compose the Twenty-Sixth District.
The parish of St. Landry shall compose the Twenty-Seventh District.
The parishes of LaSalle and Caldwell shall compose the Twenty-Eighth District.
The parishes of St. John the Baptist and St. Charles shall compose the Twenty-Ninth District.
The parishes of Beauregard and Vernon shall compose the Thirtieth District.
The parish of Jefferson Davis shall compose the Thirty-First District.
The parish of Terrebonne shall compose the Thirty-Second District.
The parish of Allen shall compose the Thirty-Third District.
Section 2. Nothing contained in this Act shall be construed to supersede or control any other Act of the Regular Session of 1975, apportioning, reapportioning, dividing or establishing the judicial districts of the state and the legislature hereby declares that it is the intent of this Act to have no effect on any other act passed at said session which apportions, reapportions, divides or establishes the judicial districts of the state, no matter which of said Acts is last enacted.
Approved by the Governor: July 23, 1975.
Published in the Official Journal of the State: August 21, 1975.
A true copy:
WADE 0. MARTIN, JR.
Secretary of State.