Boynton v. Virginia (1960)
- Docket
- 7
- Decided
- 1960-01-01
- Category
- General
Summary
Question: Did Boyton’s conviction violate the Interstate Commerce Act? Conclusion: The Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 should be interpreted to ban all forms of segregation by race in any type of public transportation. Writing for the 7-2 majority, Justice Hugo L. Black concluded that, because the bus carrier provides the services of the terminal and its restaurant to the interstate passengers, these services must be subject to the same discrimination prohibitions as the transportation itself. Since the Interstate Commerce Act prohibits racial discrimination during travel, the same restrictions apply in the stations during stops. Justice Charles E. Whittaker, joined by Justice Tom C. Clark, wrote a dissenting opinion in which he argued that the restaurant was owned and operated by a private owner unaffiliated with the bus company. Without evidence that the bus company had control over the operation of the restaurant, there was no reason to hold the restaurant to the discrimination prohibitions laid out by the Interstate Commerce Act.