Hugo Roman Almendarez-Torres v. United States
523 U.S. 224 · Decided March 24, 1998 · 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
Hugo Roman Almendarez-Torres v. United States was decided on March 24, 1998 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Stephen G. Breyer wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Double jeopardy” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 523 U.S. 224 · 118 S. Ct. 1219 · 140 L. Ed. 2d 350 · 1998 U.S. LEXIS 2118
- Docket number
- 96-6839
- Decided
- March 24, 1998
- Argued
- October 14, 1997
- 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
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Stephen G. Breyer
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Double jeopardy
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- 8 U.S.C. § 1326
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Dissent | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Hugo Roman Almendarez-Torres v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1997-045, docket 1997-045-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Double jeopardy”
- Angel Jaime Monge v. California
- John Hudson v. United StatesAltered precedent
- United States v. Guy Jerome Ursery
- Steven Kurt Witte v. United States
- Department of Revenue of Montana v. Kurth RanchLaw held unconstitutional
- Thomas Schiro v. Robert Farley
Cases on the same legal provision: 8 U.S.C. § 1326
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Garrit Bates v. United States
- Mario Salinas v. United States
- Richard F. Trest v. Burl Cain
- John Hudson v. United StatesAltered precedent
- Douglas McArthur Buchanan, Jr. v. Ronald J. Angelone
- James Brogan v. United States
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