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California v. Carney

471 U.S. 386 · Decided May 13, 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

California v. Carney was decided on May 13, 1985 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure, vehicles” in the Criminal Procedure area.

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Case details

Citations
471 U.S. 386 · 105 S. Ct. 2066 · 85 L. Ed. 2d 406 · 1985 U.S. LEXIS 8
Docket number
83-859
Decided
May 13, 1985
Argued
October 30, 1984
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
6–3
Majority opinion
Warren E. Burger
Opinion assigned by
Warren E. Burger
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Legal provision
Fourth Amendment
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Decision direction (SCDB)
Conservative what this means

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

California v. Carney

SCDB identifiers: case 1984-091, docket 1984-091-01.

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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