Federal Appeals Court Rules Board Member Cannot Sue

A federal appeals court says a Randolph County school board member cannot sue the county's board of registrars for changing his voting district because the change was rescinded before the election.

Henry Cook, a black school board member since 1993, claimed his constitutional rights were violated by efforts to change his voting registration - hence the area he represents - from a majority black district to one that's majority white.

The courts intervened, and the Justice Department concluded under the Voting Rights Act that the county failed to show no discriminatory purpose. The change was quashed, and Cook was re-elected in 2006.

The appeals panel noted Tuesday that "an attempted deprivation of constitutional or statutory rights is not the same as an actual deprivation."