Palmore v. Sidoti

466 U.S. 429 (1984)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Sidoti (P) sued to regain custody of his three-year-old daughter after Palmore (D) had been awarded custody incident to divorce. P sought revocation of the custody decree under changed circumstances because D’s second husband [D and the second husband first cohabitated together and seemed only to get married after P filed his complaint] was Black whereas P, D, and her child were Caucasian. P also made allegations about the child’s care. The Court found the child's welfare and physical environment to be adequate and D’s parenting qualifications to be sufficient. P alleged that the social stigma of being reared in a racially integrated home would prevent the child from excelling in society because of racism. The trial court held in favor of P. The appeals court affirmed without opinion thus denying the Florida Supreme Court jurisdiction. The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari.