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Cheryl K. Pliler v. Richard Herman Ford

542 U.S. 225 · Decided June 21, 2004 · 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

Cheryl K. Pliler v. Richard Herman Ford was decided on June 21, 2004 by a vote of 7–2. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Habeas corpus” in the Criminal Procedure area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
542 U.S. 225 · 124 S. Ct. 2441 · 159 L. Ed. 2d 338 · 2004 U.S. LEXIS 4384
Docket number
03-221
Decided
June 21, 2004
Argued
April 26, 2004
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Vacated and remanded
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
7–2
Majority opinion
Clarence Thomas
Opinion assigned by
William H. Rehnquist
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue (SCDB)
Habeas corpus
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

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Chief Justice William H. RehnquistMajority
Justice John Paul StevensSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Sandra Day O'ConnorConcurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Antonin ScaliaMajority
Justice Anthony M. KennedyMajority
Justice David H. SouterSpecial concurrence
Justice Clarence ThomasMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice Ruth Bader GinsburgDissentWrote an opinion
Justice Stephen G. BreyerDissentWrote an opinion

Full case caption

Cheryl K. Pliler, Warden v. Richard Herman Ford

SCDB identifiers: case 2003-077, docket 2003-077-01.

Other cases on “Habeas corpus”

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Cases on the same legal provision: 28 U.S.C. §§ 2241–2255 (habeas corpus)

Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)

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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