Humphrey v. Cady
405 U.S. 504 · Decided March 22, 1972 · 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
Humphrey v. Cady was decided on March 22, 1972 unanimously (7–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Habeas corpus” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 405 U.S. 504 · 92 S. Ct. 1048 · 31 L. Ed. 2d 394 · 1972 U.S. LEXIS 74
- Docket number
- 70-5004
- Decided
- March 22, 1972
- Argued
- December 7, 1971
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Habeas corpus
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority |
Did not participate: Lewis F. Powell Jr., William H. Rehnquist.
Full case caption
Humphrey v. Cady, Warden
SCDB identifiers: case 1971-081, docket 1971-081-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Habeas corpus”
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Harris v. Washington
- Cruz v. Hauck
- Wilwording v. Swenson
- Santobello v. New York
- Picard v. Connor
- United States v. Campos-Serrano
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