Burns v. Wilson
346 U.S. 137 · Decided June 15, 1953 · 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
Burns v. Wilson was decided on June 15, 1953 by a vote of 6–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Habeas corpus” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 346 U.S. 137 · 73 S. Ct. 1045 · 97 L. Ed. 2d 1508 · 1953 U.S. LEXIS 1900
- Docket number
- 422
- Decided
- June 15, 1953
- Argued
- February 5, 1953
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Judgment of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Fred M. Vinson
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Habeas corpus
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- 28 U.S.C. §§ 2241–2255 (habeas corpus)
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Jurisdictional dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Burns et al. v. Wilson, Secretary of Defense, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1952-107, docket 1952-107-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Habeas corpus”
- Rosenberg v. Denno
- Nevada and New York v. Stacher.
- United States v. Morgan
- Frisbie v. Collins
- United States v. Hayman
- Chessman v. Teets
Cases on the same legal provision: 28 U.S.C. §§ 2241–2255 (habeas corpus)
- Darr v. BurfordAltered precedent
- Irvin v. Dowd
- Bushnell v. Ellis
- Machibroda v. United States
- United States v. Tateo
- Harris, U.S. District Judge (Walker v. Nelson
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- United States v. Beacon Brass Co., Inc.
- Schwartz v. Texas
- Gordon v. United States
- Brock v. North Carolina
- Brown v. Allen
- United States ex Rel. Smith v. Baldi
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