Chimel v. California
395 U.S. 752 · Decided June 23, 1969 · 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
Chimel v. California was decided on June 23, 1969 by a vote of 6–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” in the Criminal Procedure area. SCDB codes this decision as formally altering one or more of the Court's own precedents.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 395 U.S. 752 · 89 S. Ct. 2034 · 23 L. Ed. 2d 685 · 1969 U.S. LEXIS 1166
- Docket number
- 770
- Decided
- June 23, 1969
- Argued
- March 27, 1969
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourth Amendment
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Altered precedent
- Yes — formally altered the Court's precedent
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority |
Full case caption
Chimel v. California
SCDB identifiers: case 1968-136, docket 1968-136-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- Von Cleef v. New Jersey
- Shipley v. California
- Davis v. Mississippi
- Giordano v. United States
- Taglianetti v. United States
- Alderman v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- Desist v. United States
- Kaiser v. New York
- Chambers v. Maroney
- Perini v. Colosimo
- Crouse v. Wood
- Hocker v. Heffley
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- McConnell v. Rhay
- Arsenault v. Massachusetts
- International Terminal Operating Co., Inc. v. Nv Nederl. Amerik Stoomv Maats
- Fuller v. Alaska
- Smith v. Yeager
- Recznik v. City of Lorain
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