Dennis Sochor v. Florida
504 U.S. 527 · Decided June 8, 1992 · 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
Dennis Sochor v. Florida was decided on June 8, 1992 by a vote of 5–4. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 504 U.S. 527 · 112 S. Ct. 2114 · 119 L. Ed. 2d 326 · 1992 U.S. LEXIS 3403
- Docket number
- 91-5843
- Decided
- June 8, 1992
- Argued
- March 2, 1992
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- David H. Souter
- Opinion assigned by
- Harry A. Blackmun
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Dissent |
Full case caption
Dennis Sochor v. Florida
SCDB identifiers: case 1991-084, docket 1991-084-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty”
- Henry Jose Espinosa v. Florida
- James Gomez and Daniel Vasquez v. United States District Court for the Northern District of California
- In re James Blodgett
- Willie Lee Richmond v. Samuel A. Lewis
- Paul Delo v. Frederick Lashley
- A. J. Arave v. Thomas E. Creech
Cases on the same legal provision: Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)
- Keith J. Hudson v. Jack McMillian
- Ronald Allen Harmelin v. Michigan
- Pearly L. Wilson v. Richard Seiter
- Donald L. Helling v. William McKinney
- Dee Farmer v. Edward Brennan
- Murray v. Giarratano
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- United States v. Alejandro Garcia Ibarra
- Wayne Estelle v. Mark Owen McGuire
- Guy Wooddell, Jr. v. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
- In re James Blodgett
- Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Joseph Patrick Doherty
- Randall D. White v. Illinois
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