Harrington v. California
395 U.S. 250 · Decided June 2, 1969 · 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
Harrington v. California was decided on June 2, 1969 by a vote of 5–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice William O. Douglas 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
- 395 U.S. 250 · 89 S. Ct. 1726 · 23 L. Ed. 2d 284 · 1969 U.S. LEXIS 1435
- Docket number
- 750
- Decided
- June 2, 1969
- Argued
- April 23, 1969
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- William O. Douglas
- Opinion assigned by
- Hugo L. Black
- 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 Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Dissent | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent |
Full case caption
Harrington v. California
SCDB identifiers: case 1968-113, docket 1968-113-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Confrontation of witnesses”
- Illinois v. Allen
- Hopper v. Louisiana
- Wade v. Yeager
- Wheat v. Washington
- Jones v. United States
- Pickens v. Oliver
Cases on the same legal provision: Harmless error
- Fontaine v. California
- Anderson v. Nelson
- Wheaton v. California
- Chapman v. California
- Milton v. Wainwright
- Eichel v. New York Central Railroad Co.
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- McConnell v. Rhay
- Arsenault v. Massachusetts
- International Terminal Operating Co., Inc. v. Nv Nederl. Amerik Stoomv Maats
- Fuller v. Alaska
- Smith v. Yeager
- Recznik v. City of Lorain
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