WASHINGTON -- South Carolina's voter ID law violates the Voting Rights Act and discriminates against minorities despite the state's assertions to the contrary, the Obama administration says in new court papers.

 

The U.S. Justice Department's comments came in a 12-page document filed Monday with a District of Columbia court in response to South Carolina's Feb. 7 voter ID lawsuit.

Justice lawyers urged the judges to reject the state's request for a declaratory judgment, which is a speedy decision by judges without a trial.

The administration rejects South Carolina's claim that the voter ID law "will not have the effect of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race, color or membership in a language minority group," Justice Department lawyers wrote in their legal brief. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson's office provided a copy of the brief Tuesday.