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Supreme Court rules for white firefighters in bias case
Michael Doyle - McClatchy NewspapersIssue date: 6/25/09 Section: Real News
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg read aloud a stinging dissent, criticizing the "strong basis in evidence" standard as "enigmatic" and confusing to employers.
"By order of this court, New Haven ... must today be served, as it was in the days of undisguised discrimination, by a fire department in which members of racial and ethnic minorities are rarely seen in command positions," Ginsburg wrote.
For Sotomayor, the high court's 34-page majority opinion will be at least a glancing blow. The court rejected the reasoning of Sotomayor and the two other judges on a panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
"The Supreme Court saw the case for what it is: a 'race-based decision' that violates federal law," declared Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who cast the high court decision as anti-Sotomayor.
Tom Goldstein, a Washington lawyer who practices regularly before the court, contended that the narrowly decided ruling split along the court's traditional ideological lines "doesn't call the confirmation into question," though it might offer Republicans more talking points. Kennedy's majority opinion doesn't directly criticize the 2nd Circuit's reasoning.
The case arose from New Haven's efforts to promote a new batch of officers. Written tests counted for 60 percent of the promotion decision, and an oral exam counted for 40 percent.
The African-American pass rate on the written exam was roughly half that of the white applicants'. The Hispanic pass rate was lower, and none of the top 19 scorers in the competition for captain and lieutenant positions was African-American. Under civil rights law, this is a "disparate impact" that can be considered evidence of discrimination.
New Haven officials had said they feared that the test results exposed them to a "disparate impact" lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The white firefighters stressed their own efforts to pass the test. The 34-year-old Ricci, for instance, took additional measures including converting text to tape to overcome his dyslexia.
"There is no evidence that the tests were flawed," Kennedy wrote.
A trial judge initially rejected the firefighters' claims in a 48-page opinion whose reasoning later was adopted by Sotomayor and the two other appellate judges.
"We're quite disappointed in the decision," said John Payton, the head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. "It's a step back from the goal of equal employment opportunities."
"By order of this court, New Haven ... must today be served, as it was in the days of undisguised discrimination, by a fire department in which members of racial and ethnic minorities are rarely seen in command positions," Ginsburg wrote.
For Sotomayor, the high court's 34-page majority opinion will be at least a glancing blow. The court rejected the reasoning of Sotomayor and the two other judges on a panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
"The Supreme Court saw the case for what it is: a 'race-based decision' that violates federal law," declared Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who cast the high court decision as anti-Sotomayor.
Tom Goldstein, a Washington lawyer who practices regularly before the court, contended that the narrowly decided ruling split along the court's traditional ideological lines "doesn't call the confirmation into question," though it might offer Republicans more talking points. Kennedy's majority opinion doesn't directly criticize the 2nd Circuit's reasoning.
The case arose from New Haven's efforts to promote a new batch of officers. Written tests counted for 60 percent of the promotion decision, and an oral exam counted for 40 percent.
The African-American pass rate on the written exam was roughly half that of the white applicants'. The Hispanic pass rate was lower, and none of the top 19 scorers in the competition for captain and lieutenant positions was African-American. Under civil rights law, this is a "disparate impact" that can be considered evidence of discrimination.
New Haven officials had said they feared that the test results exposed them to a "disparate impact" lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The white firefighters stressed their own efforts to pass the test. The 34-year-old Ricci, for instance, took additional measures including converting text to tape to overcome his dyslexia.
"There is no evidence that the tests were flawed," Kennedy wrote.
A trial judge initially rejected the firefighters' claims in a 48-page opinion whose reasoning later was adopted by Sotomayor and the two other appellate judges.
"We're quite disappointed in the decision," said John Payton, the head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. "It's a step back from the goal of equal employment opportunities."
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