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Moore v. City of East Cleveland Case Brief
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Case Brief Summary & Legal Analysis
tl;dr: A city ordinance narrowly defined “family,” making it a crime for a grandmother to live with her son and two grandsons who were cousins. The Supreme Court found the ordinance unconstitutional, protecting extended family living arrangements under the Due Process Clause.
Legal Significance: This case established that the fundamental right to family integrity, protected by substantive due process, extends beyond the nuclear family to include the extended family, subjecting intrusive government regulations of family living arrangements to heightened judicial scrutiny.
Moore v. City of East Cleveland Law School Study Guide
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Case Facts & Court Holding
Key Facts & Case Background
Appellant Inez Moore, a grandmother, lived in her East Cleveland, Ohio home with her son and her two grandsons. The two grandsons were first cousins rather than brothers. One grandson, John Moore, Jr., came to live with her after his mother’s death. An East Cleveland housing ordinance limited the occupancy of a dwelling unit to members of a single “family.” The ordinance’s definition of “family” was unusually restrictive, recognizing only a few categories of related individuals. Under this definition, Mrs. Moore’s household was not a single family because it contained grandsons from different children. The city cited Mrs. Moore for a violation, declaring her grandson John an “illegal occupant.” When she refused to evict her grandson, the city filed a criminal charge. Mrs. Moore was convicted, sentenced to five days in jail, and fined $25. She challenged the ordinance as an unconstitutional infringement on her rights under the Fourteenth Amendment.
Court Holding & Legal Precedent
Issue: Does a municipal housing ordinance that narrowly defines “family” to exclude a grandmother living with her son and two grandsons, who are cousins, unconstitutionally violate the fundamental right to family integrity protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?
Yes. The plurality reversed Moore’s conviction, holding that the ordinance was unconstitutional. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mo
IRAC Legal Analysis
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Legal Issue
Does a municipal housing ordinance that narrowly defines “family” to exclude a grandmother living with her son and two grandsons, who are cousins, unconstitutionally violate the fundamental right to family integrity protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?
Conclusion
This decision significantly broadened the constitutional protection for family autonomy under the Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostr
Legal Rule
The freedom of personal choice in matters of marriage and family life Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor si
Legal Analysis
The plurality opinion, authored by Justice Powell, distinguished this case from Village Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem
Flash-to-Full Case Opinions
Flash Summary
- A zoning ordinance that narrowly defines “family” to exclude certain relatives,
