Alabama; Riley follows through and appoints Bowman to Jefferson County Commission
AP reports: Republican Gov. Bob Riley appointed retired Army Gen. George F. Bowman on Wednesday to a vacancy on the Jefferson County Commission — a move similar to a Mobile County appointment that ignited a court fight now before the U.S. Supreme Court.
The high court on Tuesday agreed to review the Mobile County case. A ruling is not expected until next year.
Voting rights attorney Ed Still of Birmingham said a lawsuit has been filed in U.S. District Court in Montgomery challenging Bowman's appointment on the same grounds as the Mobile County case.
Still said the cases are "almost identical." -- Riley's Jeffco appointment brings voting rights challenge
Update: A longer story is in the Thursday paper. -- Gov. Bob Riley appoints retired general to replace Larry Langford on Jefferson County Commission
Another update:
The Mobile Press-Register includes in its story: Cecil Gardner, the attorney who sued Riley over the Chastang appointment, compared the governor's decision Wednesday in Birmingham with former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore's actions in 2003.
Moore ignored a federal court order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the rotunda of the state judicial building. He was eventually removed from office.
"Riley is taking the same path that Chief Justice Roy Moore took," Gardner said. "And Riley will find, just like Moore, that he's going to get into deep water because of this."
Jeff Emerson, a spokesman for Riley, called that comparison "totally invalid," saying the Mobile ruling had no bearing on the Jefferson County vacancy. -- Riley appointment faces challenge