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Florida v. Joe Elton Nixon

543 U.S. 175 · Decided December 13, 2004 · 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

Florida v. Joe Elton Nixon was decided on December 13, 2004 unanimously (8–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Stephen G. Breyer wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.

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Case details

Citations
543 U.S. 175 · 125 S. Ct. 551 · 160 L. Ed. 2d 565 · 2004 U.S. LEXIS 8270
Docket number
03-931
Decided
December 13, 2004
Argued
November 2, 2004
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed and remanded
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
8–0 (unanimous)
Majority opinion
Stephen G. Breyer
Opinion assigned by
John Paul Stevens
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue (SCDB)
Right to counsel
Legal provision
Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Decision direction (SCDB)
Conservative what this means

How the Justices voted

Did not participate: William H. Rehnquist.

Full case caption

Florida v. Joe Elton Nixon

SCDB identifiers: case 2004-011, docket 2004-011-01.

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Cases on the same legal provision: Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)

Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)

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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