Brinegar v. United States
338 U.S. 160 · Decided June 27, 1949 · 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
Brinegar v. United States was decided on June 27, 1949 by a vote of 6–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Wiley B. Rutledge wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure, vehicles” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 338 U.S. 160 · 69 S. Ct. 1302 · 93 L. Ed. 2d 1879 · 1949 U.S. LEXIS 2084
- Docket number
- 12
- Decided
- June 27, 1949
- Argued
- October 18, 1948
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Wiley B. Rutledge
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure, vehicles
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourth Amendment
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Dissent | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Frank Murphy | Dissent | |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Wiley B. Rutledge | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority |
Full case caption
Brinegar v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1948-121, docket 1948-121-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure, vehicles”
- Rios v. United States
- Fahy v. Connecticut
- Preston v. United States
- One 1958 Plymouth Sedan v. Pennsylvania
- Cooper v. California
- Harris v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- McDonald v. United States
- United States v. RabinowitzAltered precedent
- Trupiano v. United States
- Johnson v. United States
- United States v. Di re
- Harris v. United States
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Upshaw v. United States
- Uveges v. Pennsylvania
- McDonald v. United States
- Michelson v. United States
- Frazier v. United States
- Fisher v. Pace
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