Moore v. East Cleveland
| Moore v. City Of East Cleveland, Ohio | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Argued November 2, 1976 Decided May 31, 1977 |
|
| Full case name | Inez Moore, Appellant, v. City of East Cleveland, Ohio |
| Citations | 431 U.S. 494 (more) |
| Holding | |
| An East Cleveland, Ohio zoning ordinance that prohibited a grandmother from living with her grandchild was unconstitutional | |
| Court membership | |
|
|
| Case opinions | |
| Plurality | Powell, joined by Brennan, Marshall, Blackmun |
| Concurrence | Brennan, joined by Marshall |
| Concurrence | Stevens |
| Dissent | Burger |
| Dissent | Stewart, joined by Rehnquist |
| Dissent | White |
| Laws applied | |
| U.S. Const. amend. XIV | |
Moore v. City of East Cleveland 431 U.S. 494 (1977), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court ruled that an East Cleveland, Ohio zoning ordinance that prohibited a grandmother from living with her grandchild was unconstitutional. Writing for a plurality of the Court, Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr. ruled that the East Cleveland zoning ordinance violated substantive due process because it intruded too far upon the "sanctity of the family." Justice John Paul Stevens wrote an opinion concurring in the judgment in which he agreed that the ordinance was unconstitutional, but he based his conclusion upon the theory that the ordinance intruded too far upon the Moore's ability to use her property "as she sees fit." Scholars have recognized Moore as one of several Supreme Court decisions that established "a constitutional right to family integrity."
In 1966, East Cleveland, Ohio passed a zoning ordinance that limited the occupancy of a housing unit to "members of a single family." The ordinance contained "an unusual and complicated" definition of "family," which only recognized a few narrowly defined categories of individuals as a family unit. Specifically, the ordinance defined a "family" as "the head of a household, his or her spouse, the couple's childless unmarried children, at most one child of the couple with dependent children, and one parent of either the head of the household or his or her spouse."
Inez Moore lived in East Cleveland, Ohio with her son, Dale Moore, Sr., his son, Dale Moore, Jr., as well as John Moore Jr., a grandson who was the child of one of Inez Moore's other children. In early 1973, Inez Moore received a citation from the City, which informed her that John Moore, Jr. was an "illegal occupant" in violation of the city's zoning ordinance because he did not fit within the statute's definition of a "family" unit. When Inez Moore refused to remove John Moore, Jr. from the home, the City filed criminal charges. At trial, Moore argued that the ordinance was facially unconstitutional, but the court sentenced her to five days in jail and ordered her to pay a $25 fine. The Ohio Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the trial court, and the Ohio Supreme Court denied review. In 1976, the Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari to review the case.
...
Wikipedia