Juan Melendez v. United States
518 U.S. 120 · Decided June 17, 1996 · 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
Juan Melendez v. United States was decided on June 17, 1996 by a vote of 7–2. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Clarence Thomas 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
- 518 U.S. 120 · 116 S. Ct. 2057 · 135 L. Ed. 2d 427 · 1996 U.S. LEXIS 3895
- Docket number
- 95-5661
- Decided
- June 17, 1996
- Argued
- February 27, 1996
- 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
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Clarence Thomas
- 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Juan Melendez v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1995-072, docket 1995-072-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Statutory construction of criminal laws, sentencing guidelines”
- Stacey C. Koon v. United States
- United States v. Vernon Watts
- United States v. Miguel Gonzales
- United States v. George Labonte
- Terry Lynn Stinson v. United States
- William Fex v. Michigan
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Tana Wood v. Dwayne Earl Bartholomew
- Lem Davis Tuggle, Jr. v. J. D. Netherland
- Joseph Libretti v. United States
- Carl Thompson v. Patrick Keohane
- Roland J. Bailey v. United States
- Meirl Gilbert Neal 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