Jackson is a city of approximately 50,000 people, of which nearly 70% are African-American. Five of the seven city council members are African-American. The average economic standard of living for Jackson's African-Americans is slightly higher than that of the minority white and Hispanic populations that compose the other 30%. Furthermore, on average, white and Hispanic students in Jackson's public schools do not perform as well on standardized tests as their African-American peers. African-Americans account for 43% of the city's police force, while white and Hispanic officers compose 57% percent.
Thirty years ago, Jackson was a very different place than it is today. In 1972, African-Americans made up only a fifth of the city's population. The city council that year was entirely white. On the whole, African-Americans held a significantly lower standard of living than the majority white population and an extreme minority Hispanic population. African-American students in the city's public school system were, as a group, the lowest scoring in the state on standardized tests, while white and Hispanic students that year performed at a level just above the state average. The police force in 1972 was entirely white.
During 1970s and 1980s, Jackson attracted the national spotlight for its frequent race riots, which usually grew out of clashes between the white police force and the African-American population. On several occasions, police officers were indicted. On one occasion, federal prosecutors convicted a police officer for violating the civil rights of suspects. In every such case, the police officers were white and the suspects were African-American. The most recent trial of three white Jackson police officers ended in 2000 with a conviction for the beating of an African-American suspect taken into custody in 1998.
As the 1990s drew to a close, Jackson underwent some drastic changes. Almost overnight, the affluent white population left the city in droves, while the African-American community advanced in prominence and wealth. The average income of African-American families increased, while that of whites and Hispanics left behind dropped. African-American students began to excel in the classroom, as whites and Hispanics struggled. By 1994, African-Americans were the majority in the city.
Although minorities rose in status, the Jackson city council and police force remained almost exclusively white. Not until 1998 did African-American candidates hold more than two seats on the council. The police force went from being about 10% African American in 1990 to 30% by 1995 and to 40% in 2000.
In order to remedy what appeared to be a dangerous lack of African-American representation on the city's police force and its empirically discriminatory practices, the City Council passed a statue in the fall of 2000 that grants preferential weight to any African American applying for a position on the city's police force. The statute's language is clear: 'In the event that there are several candidates applying for a position to Jackson's police force, African-American candidates are to be preferred when the qualifications of all of the applicants are reasonably similar.'
In November 2000, the position of sergeant became available on the Jackson's police force and two officers applied: Bob Smith, a thirty year old white officer, and Carl Brocker, an African-American, thirty-one. Both had been patrol officers in Jackson for about ten years and each candidate was deemed highly qualified for the position. Each had an exemplary service record and each had received numerous commendations for acts of service and bravery.
Officer Smith, during his ten years on the force, patrolled a largely African-American neighborhood, where he had slowly earned the trust and respect of the community. Officer Brocker, during his ten years on the force, patrolled an almost entirely white neighborhood. He was very popular and admired by the local residents.
Officer Smith received an award in 1996 from the local chapter of the NAACP for helping to improve the city's race relations after the 1994 scandal involving police abuse of African-American suspects. The two officers, though, are not different in any other relevant way.
Under the statue enacted in the fall of 2000, police commissioner Bill Albert had no choice but to choose Carl Brocker as the new sergeant. Commissioner Albert noted: 'Once I read their applications and determined that they were reasonably similar candidates, the challenge was over. The law obligated me to select Carl Brocker, although I know that either candidate would have done a wonderful job.'
Officer Bob Smith immediately filed suit. At trial, the judge found that the statute violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Appellate Court overturned the lower court ruling. The Supreme Court of the United States, after reviewing the lower court's ruling, granted certiorari.
Arguments must come from one of the following Supreme Court Cases:
University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978)
Fullilove v. Klutznick, 448 U.S. 448 (1980)
Wygant v. Jackson Board of Education, 476 U.S. 267
Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co., 488 U.S. 469 (1989)
Metro Broadcasting, Inc. v. FCC, 497 U.S. 547
Adarand Constructors v. Fedrico Pena, Secretary of Transportation et al, (1995)
Some of the constitutional questions you may consider in this case:
Should the Court apply strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, or some less exacting form of review?
If strict scrutiny:
1) Do remedying past discrimination and increasing African-American representation on the Jackson police force constitute a compelling state interest? Is this city's law narrowly tailored to the achievement of that interest?
2) Can the city's policy remedy past discrimination in and by the police and increase African-American representation through less drastic means?
If intermediate scrutiny:
1) Is this policy based on important governmental objectives?
2) Is the policy substantially related to the achievement of those objectives?