One of Pennsylvania's new Senate districts is shaped like a wishbone.

Another looks like a crooked finger.

And a third district, which stretches into Lancaster County, could actually be mistaken for an "iron cross," says the state Supreme Court.

And that, in a nutshell, is the problem.

Pennsylvania's high court said in an 87-page majority opinion that it threw out the new legislative map because of the number of misshapen districts that split townships and counties, one of which was made to include only a small part of Lancaster County.

The court, in an opinion recently made public, criticized the state reapportionment panel's redrawn 15th Senate District, which meanders across four counties and includes the 3,200 residents of Conoy Township.

The majority justice described the district, now represented by Republican Sen. Jeff Piccola of Harrisburg, as an "iron cross" and cited it as one of many that unnecessarily split municipalities.

The ruling, written by Chief Justice Ronald Castille, said the new map failed to meet the constitutional requirements of geographic compactness, contiguity and integrity of political subdivisions.

"The constitutional commands and restrictions on the process exist precisely as a brake on the most overt of potential excesses and abuse," wrote Castille. "Moreover, the restrictions recognize that communities indeed have shared interests for which they can more effectively advocate when they can act as a united body."

The redrawn 15th Senate District covers parts of Adams, Dauphin and York counties, but includes only one of Lancaster County's 60 municipalities — Conoy Township.

Gina R. Mariani, who chairs Conoy Township's board of supervisors, said few people appear to have taken notice of the controversy there.

"I haven't heard any discussion about it from anybody," she said.

She added that she was satisfied with the old district and didn't know why Conoy Township had to be moved into another district.

The Supreme Court ruling ordering the former districts to remain in place for now means Conoy Township is back in the 48th, represented by Republican Sen. Mike Folmer of Lebanon.

Steve Mohr, also a Conoy Township supervisor, said the panel that redrew the boundaries surely could have drawn a simpler map. But he said he doesn't have a preference where the township ends up.

"Either way we will be at a distance from the rest of the district," he said.

The old 48th stretches from the Elizabethtown area north into Lebanon County and east into Berks County.

Mohr said he hasn't heard much in the way of confusion or complaints about redistricting, and that the final map would not have a major impact.

"With the communications available today, I conversed with Mike Folmer's office frequently," Mohr said. "If we have a senator out of York County, he'll hear from us also.

"What you have to remember is that a very small percent of the people ever contact their state senator. What I've found is that a majority of them will contact a House member first because there are so many more of those. Usually, one of their offices is closer."

The Supreme Court also cited problems with the "compactness" of two other Senate districts. It described the 3rd district, which stretches from the far northeast section of Philadelphia down into North Philadelphia and then up again into the Roxborough/Chestnut Hill area, as a "wish bone."

The court said the 35th district, which runs north from the Mason-Dixon Line across two-thirds of the state, looks like a "crooked finger."

tmurse@lnpnews.com