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Albernaz v. United States

450 U.S. 333 · Decided March 9, 1981 · Supreme Court of the United States

Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.

At a glance

Albernaz v. United States was decided on March 9, 1981 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Double jeopardy” in the Criminal Procedure area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
450 U.S. 333 · 101 S. Ct. 1137 · 67 L. Ed. 2d 275 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 78
Docket number
79-1709
Decided
March 9, 1981
Argued
January 19, 1981
Court era
Burger Court
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Affirmed
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
Vote
9–0 (unanimous)
Majority opinion
William H. Rehnquist
Opinion assigned by
Warren E. Burger
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue (SCDB)
Double jeopardy
Legal provision
Fifth Amendment (double jeopardy)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Decision direction (SCDB)
Conservative what this means

How the Justices voted

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Justice William J. Brennan Jr.Majority
Justice Potter StewartSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Byron R. WhiteMajority
Justice Thurgood MarshallSpecial concurrence
Chief Justice Warren E. BurgerMajority
Justice Harry A. BlackmunMajority
Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr.Majority
Justice William H. RehnquistMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice John Paul StevensSpecial concurrence

Full case caption

Albernaz et al. v. United States

SCDB identifiers: case 1980-053, docket 1980-053-01.

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Cases on the same legal provision: Fifth Amendment (double jeopardy)

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Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error