Goldblatt v. Town of Hempstead (1961)
- Docket
- 78
- Decided
- 1961-01-01
- Category
- General
Summary
Question: Do regulatory ordinances that result in taking land that was previously used for purposes of profit violate the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment? Conclusion: No. Justice Thomas C. Clark delivered the opinion of the 7-0 majority. The court held that regulation ordinances that take property previously used for personal profit are constitutional if the regulations are reasonable within due process of the law. The ordinance in this case was a valid exercise of the town’s police powers since it was passed as a safety measure to protect the general public of the town; therefore, the regulations are reasonable and do not violate the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice Felix Frankfurter and Justice Byron R. White took no part in the decision of this case.