Colorado v. Connelly
479 U.S. 157 · Decided December 10, 1986 · 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
Colorado v. Connelly was decided on December 10, 1986 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Involuntary confession” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 479 U.S. 157 · 107 S. Ct. 515 · 93 L. Ed. 2d 473 · 1986 U.S. LEXIS 23
- Docket number
- 85-660
- Decided
- December 10, 1986
- Argued
- October 8, 1986
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Involuntary confession
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority |
Full case caption
Colorado v. Connelly
SCDB identifiers: case 1986-012, docket 1986-012-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Involuntary confession”
- Colorado v. Spring
- Crane v. Kentucky
- Lanier v. South Carolina
- Arizona v. FulminanteAltered precedent
- Taylor v. Alabama
- Dunaway v. New York
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Pennsylvania v. Ritchie
- Asahi Metal Industry Co., Ltd. v. Superior Court of California
- Martin v. Ohio
- Bowers v. Hardwick
- McMillan v. Pennsylvania
- Board of Pardons v. Allen
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Griffith v. Kentucky
- Colorado v. Bertine
- Connecticut v. Barrett
- California v. Brown
- Colorado v. Spring
- Pennsylvania v. Ritchie
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