Harold Ray Wade v. United States
504 U.S. 181 · Decided May 18, 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
Harold Ray Wade v. United States was decided on May 18, 1992 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Statutory construction of criminal laws, sentencing guidelines” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 504 U.S. 181 · 112 S. Ct. 1840 · 118 L. Ed. 2d 524 · 1992 U.S. LEXIS 2700
- Docket number
- 91-5771
- Decided
- May 18, 1992
- Argued
- March 23, 1992
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- David H. Souter
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- 18 U.S.C. § 3553
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority |
Full case caption
Harold Ray Wade v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1991-072, docket 1991-072-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Statutory construction of criminal laws, sentencing guidelines”
- William Fex v. Michigan
- United States v. Sharon Dunnigan
- Terry Lynn Stinson v. United States
- Thomas Braxton v. United States
- Taylor v. United States
- Stacey C. Koon v. United States
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