In 1976, the last major piece of traditional equal protection doctrine fell into place. That year the Supreme Court held in Washington v. Davis that in the absence of a racially discriminatory purpose a facially neutral governmental action having an adverse racial impact would not be subject to strict scrutiny. Some commentators have supported the intent requirement; some have quarreled with it; and many have argued with how the Court has applied it. All agree, however, that current doctrine makes intent the key to equal protection, and nearly all agree why.

Citation
Daniel R. Ortiz, The Myth of Intent in Equal Protection, 41 Stanford Law Review, 1105–1151 (1989).
UVA Law Faculty Affiliations
Daniel R. Ortiz