November 23, 2001

Judge in Miss. Desegregation Case Says Plaintiffs May Not Opt Out of Settlement

By SARA HEBEL

Ninety-nine black plaintiffs in Mississippi's long-running college-desegregation case who oppose a 17-year, $503-million proposal to settle the class-action lawsuit cannot opt out of the settlement plan, a federal judge has ruled.

U.S. District Judge Neal B. Biggers Jr. denied the plaintiffs' request to divide the class -- which includes about 450,000 black Mississippians -- so that they would not be bound by the agreement.

The judge said the individuals had failed to show that

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