Brower v. County of Inyo
489 U.S. 593 · Decided March 21, 1989 · 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
Brower v. County of Inyo was decided on March 21, 1989 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Antonin Scalia 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
- 489 U.S. 593 · 109 S. Ct. 1378 · 103 L. Ed. 2d 628 · 1989 U.S. LEXIS 1569
- Docket number
- 87-248
- Decided
- March 21, 1989
- Argued
- January 11, 1989
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Antonin Scalia
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- 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)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority |
Full case caption
Brower, Individually and as Administrator of the Estate of Caldwell (Brower), et al. v. County of Inyo et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1988-053, docket 1988-053-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure, vehicles”
- Florida v. Wells
- Alabama v. Vanessa Rose White
- Michigan Department of State Police v. Rick Sitz
- Florida v. Luz Piedad Jimeno
- Colorado v. Bertine
- California v. Charles Steven AcevedoAltered precedent
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- Skinner v. Railway Labor Executives' Association
- National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab
- United States v. Sokolow
- Florida v. Riley
- Murray v. United States
- Michigan v. Chesternut
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Pennsylvania v. Bruder
- Lockhart, A. L. v. Nelson
- Olden v. Kentucky
- Perry v. Leeke
- Florida v. Riley
- United States v. Broce
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