Roe v. Conn

Wambles (plaintiff), a white woman, lived with her son Roe (plaintiff) and a Black man to whom she was not married. Coppage (defendant), a white man claiming to be Roe's father, called the police alleging Roe was being neglected. Officer Conn (defendant) inspected the home, found it clean and well-stocked with food, and found Roe in good physical condition with no signs of abuse — yet still obtained a pickup order under an Alabama statute allowing immediate removal whenever a child's welfare required it, without any showing of exigency or any notice-and-hearing requirement, and removed Roe about an hour later. A hearing wasn't held until 38 days after removal, at which the family court awarded Coppage temporary custody and later denied Wambles's custody petition; the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals affirmed, and Wambles brought this federal challenge.