Harris v. United States
331 U.S. 145 · Decided May 5, 1947 · 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
Harris v. United States was decided on May 5, 1947 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 331 U.S. 145 · 67 S. Ct. 1098 · 91 L. Ed. 1399 · 1947 U.S. LEXIS 2936
- Docket number
- 34
- Decided
- May 5, 1947
- Argued
- December 12, 1946
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Fred M. Vinson
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourth Amendment
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Frank Murphy | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Wiley B. Rutledge | Dissent | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Harris v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1946-095, docket 1946-095-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- United States v. Di re
- Johnson v. United States
- Trupiano v. United States
- McDonald v. United States
- United States v. Wallace & Tiernan Co.
- Wolf v. Colorado
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- Brinegar v. United States
- Rios v. United States
- Lanza v. New York
- Wheeldin v. Wheeler
- Fahy v. Connecticut
- Preston v. United States
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Cleveland v. United States
- Carter v. Illinois
- United States v. Bruno
- Fiswick v. United States
- United States v. Sheridan
- Louisiana ex Rel. Francis v. Resweber
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