Alito, Thomas Dissent in Gun Case as D.C. Ruling Weighs Race in Police Seizures
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 22
Alito, Thomas Dissent in Gun Case as D.C. Ruling Weighs Race in Police Seizures
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 22
Summary
Two Supreme Court justices said the court erred in declining to hear U.S. v. Donte Carter, arguing a D.C. appeals ruling wrongly requires police to factor race into whether a stop became an unlawful seizure.
Alito, joined by Thomas, wrote that officers would be forced to craft different rules for Black people and other minority groups, which he said conflicts with the court’s color-blind equal-protection precedents.
The D.C. Court of Appeals had vacated Carter’s firearm and theft convictions, finding police seized him before they had reasonable suspicion because a reasonable Black person might feel less free to end the encounter.
That encounter led officers to spot an L-shaped bulge after Carter denied carrying a weapon and was told to pull up his pants; police then recovered a stolen .40-caliber pistol.
When does acknowledging race in police encounters cross the line into unconstitutional discrimination?
With 'color-blind' rulings reshaping voting and education, is policing the next major battleground?
Race, Reasonableness, and the Fourth Amendment: The Impact of the Supreme Court’s Refusal in *United States v. Carter*
Overview
In April 2026, the Supreme Court declined to review United States v. Donte J. Carter, leaving the D.C. Court of Appeals’ race-conscious ruling in place. This decision sets a precedent for lower courts to consider race in Fourth Amendment cases, especially when evaluating police encounters. The Supreme Court’s refusal was not unanimous, as Justices Alito and Thomas strongly dissented, with Alito referencing key cases to argue against the D.C. court’s approach. The outcome highlights a growing debate over whether courts should adopt a colorblind or race-conscious standard when interpreting constitutional protections in policing.