Leonard Heller v. Samuel Doe
509 U.S. 312 · Decided June 24, 1993 · 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
Leonard Heller v. Samuel Doe was decided on June 24, 1993 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Due process, miscellaneous” in the Due Process area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 509 U.S. 312 · 113 S. Ct. 2637 · 125 L. Ed. 2d 257 · 1993 U.S. LEXIS 4397
- Docket number
- 92-351
- Decided
- June 24, 1993
- Argued
- March 22, 1993
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Due process, miscellaneous
- Issue area
- Due Process
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority |
Full case caption
Leonard Heller, Secretary, Kentucky Cabinet for Human Resources v. Samuel Doe, by His Mother and Next Friend, Mary Doe, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1992-107, docket 1992-107-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Due process, miscellaneous”
- Teofilo Medina, Jr. v. California
- Terry Foucha v. LouisianaLaw held unconstitutional
- Diane Griffin v. United States
- Edward Harold Schad, Jr. v. Arizona
- Byron Keith Cooper v. OklahomaLaw held unconstitutional
- Montana v. James Allen Egelhoff
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Txo Production Corp. v. Alliance Resources Corp.
- John Sullivan v. Louisiana
- Leonel Torres Herrera v. James A. Collins
- Al C. Parke v. Ricky Harold Raley
- Kevin Albright v. Roger Oliver, Etc.
- Clarence Victor v. Nebraska
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