A deadlock would have resulted in Ali being jailed for draft evasion and, since no opinions are published for deadlocked decisions, he would have never known why he had lost. A compromise was proposed by Justice Potter Stewart, in which Ali's conviction would be reversed, citing a technical error by the Justice Department. This gradually won unanimous assent from the eight voting justices, all of whom, with Justice Marshall's recusal, were white.
If Ali had been found guilty, he would have faced jail time for draft evasion, and since there is no precedent for deadlocked decisions, he would not have known why he lost. Justice Potter Stewart suggested a compromise that would reverse Ali's conviction, citing an error by the Department of Justice. This proposal eventually won over unanimous support from the eight voting justices, all of whom, with Justice Marshall recusing himself, were white.