Members of the Civil Rights Committee at the Law School are researching the legal brief for Julian Bond, the 26-year-old Atlanta legislator who was barred from his seat two weeks ago by the Georgia House of Representatives.
On Friday, a three-judge panel will hear the petition filed by Bond's attorney's seeking an injunction that would force the legislature to seat him.
Joseph P. Meissner, a third-year student at the Law School and president of the Civil Rights Committee, contacted one of Bond's lawyers late last week and offered assistance.
The lawyer, Charles Morgan, asked Meissner to research precedents supporting his brief. The brief alleges that by refusing to seat Bond, the Georgia House has denied him his Constitutional rights under the 5th, 6th, 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments.
Frank R. Parker, a third-year law student and a member of the Civil Rights Committee, is looking into previous use of the 14th Amendment as a Constitutional limitation on the powers of legislatures to expel members. The 14th Amendment prohibits the States from depriving citizens of "life, liberty, or property" without due process of the law.
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