Donald H. Rumsfeld v. Jose Padilla and Donna R. Newman
542 U.S. 426 · Decided June 28, 2004 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Donald H. Rumsfeld v. Jose Padilla and Donna R. Newman was decided on June 28, 2004 by a vote of 5–4. 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 “Habeas corpus” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 542 U.S. 426 · 124 S. Ct. 2711 · 159 L. Ed. 2d 513 · 2004 U.S. LEXIS 4759
- Docket number
- 03-1027
- Decided
- June 28, 2004
- Argued
- April 28, 2004
- 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
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Habeas corpus
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- 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
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Concurrence | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Dissent | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent |
Full case caption
Donald H. Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense v. Jose Padilla and Donna R. Newman, as Next Friend of Jose Padilla
SCDB identifiers: case 2003-084, docket 2003-084-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Habeas corpus”
- Shafiq Rasul v. George W. Bush
- Flora Holland v. Jessie L. Jackson
- Robert James Tennard v. Doug Dretke
- Cheryl K. Pliler v. Richard Herman Ford
- Doug Dretke v. Michael Wayne Haley
- Hernan O'Ryan Castro v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: 28 U.S.C. §§ 2241–2255 (habeas corpus)
- Michael Yarborough v. Michael Alvarado
- George H. Baldwin v. Michael Reese
- Ricky Bell v. Gary Bradford Cone
- Jill L. Brown v. William Charles Payton
- Robert Johnson, Jr. v. United States
- John A. Pace v. David Diguglielmo
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Michael Yarborough v. Lionel E. Gentry
- Betty Mitchell v. Gregory Esparza
- United States v. Lashawn Lowell Banks
- Maryland v. Joseph Jermaine Pringle
- Hernan O'Ryan Castro v. United States
- Illinois v. Robert S. Lidster
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