A Service of UA Little Rock
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Hearings on Desegregation Case to Begin

A proposed agreement going before a federal judge could soon end decades of court battles and $1 billion in state funding to three Little Rock area school districts. U.S. District Judge Price Marshall will hear arguments Monday and Tuesday on whether to officially end the dispute rooted in the 1957 Central High School desegregation fight.

Marshall in November tentatively approved the plan calling for payments to end in four years after the state pays an additional nearly $70 million a year to the districts. Marshall cannot modify the agreement - only approve or disapprove it.

If the agreement falls apart, a trial on the state's request to immediately end the payments is set for March. Attorneys on both sides say they see no reason why the judge would disapprove the plan.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.