Bell v. United States
462 U.S. 356 · Decided June 13, 1983 · 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
Bell v. United States was decided on June 13, 1983 by a vote of 8–1. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Statutory construction of criminal laws, financial crimes” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 462 U.S. 356 · 103 S. Ct. 2398 · 76 L. Ed. 2d 638 · 1983 U.S. LEXIS 59
- Docket number
- 82-5119
- Decided
- June 13, 1983
- Argued
- April 25, 1983
- 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
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Lewis F. Powell Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- 18 U.S.C. § 2113
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
Bell v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1982-108, docket 1982-108-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Statutory construction of criminal laws, financial crimes”
- Williams v. United States
- McElroy v. United States
- Chiarella v. United States
- H. J. Inc. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co.
- United States v. Cook
- United States v. Braverman
Cases on the same legal provision: 18 U.S.C. § 2113
- McLaughlin v. United States
- Simpson v. United States
- United States v. Gaddis
- Floyd J. Carter v. United States
- Heflin v. United States
- Prince v. United States
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Anderson v. Harless
- Wyrick v. Fields
- Pillsbury Co. v. Conboy
- Missouri v. Hunter
- Marshall v. Lonberger
- South Dakota v. Neville
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