Delaware v. Van Arsdall
475 U.S. 673 · Decided April 7, 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
Delaware v. Van Arsdall was decided on April 7, 1986 by a vote of 7–2. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Confrontation of witnesses” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 475 U.S. 673 · 106 S. Ct. 1431 · 89 L. Ed. 2d 674 · 1986 U.S. LEXIS 94
- Docket number
- 84-1279
- Decided
- April 7, 1986
- Argued
- January 22, 1986
- Court era
- Burger Court
- 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
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Confrontation of witnesses
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Harmless error
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
Delaware v. Van Arsdall
SCDB identifiers: case 1985-062, docket 1985-062-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Confrontation of witnesses”
- United States v. Inadi
- Lee v. Illinois
- New Mexico v. Earnest
- Delaware v. Fensterer
- Tennessee v. Street
- Cruz v. New York
Cases on the same legal provision: Harmless error
- Rose v. Clark
- Rushen v. Spain
- United States v. Hasting
- Moore v. United States
- Milton v. Wainwright
- Fontaine v. California
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Delaware v. Fensterer
- Lanier v. South Carolina
- Pennsylvania v. Goldhammer
- Hill v. Lockhart
- Heath v. Alabama
- Miller v. Fenton
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