Caldwell v. Mississippi
472 U.S. 320 · Decided June 11, 1985 · 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
Caldwell v. Mississippi was decided on June 11, 1985 by a vote of 5–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 472 U.S. 320 · 105 S. Ct. 2633 · 86 L. Ed. 2d 231 · 1985 U.S. LEXIS 96
- Docket number
- 83-6607
- Decided
- June 11, 1985
- Argued
- February 25, 1985
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)
- 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. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Did not participate: Lewis F. Powell Jr..
Full case caption
Caldwell v. Mississippi
SCDB identifiers: case 1984-122, docket 1984-122-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty”
- Baldwin v. Alabama
- Cabana v. Bullock
- Skipper v. South Carolina
- Spaziano v. Florida
- Ford v. Wainwright
- Antone v. Dugger
Cases on the same legal provision: Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)
- Whitley v. Albers
- California v. Brown
- Solem v. Helm
- Hutto v. Davis
- Rhodes v. Chapman
- Murray v. Giarratano
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Florida v. Rodriguez
- Thompson v. Louisiana
- Luce v. United States
- United States v. Abel
- United States v. Powell
- Garcia v. United States
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