Luis E. Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts
557 U.S. 305 · Decided June 25, 2009 · 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
Luis E. Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts was decided on June 25, 2009 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Confrontation of witnesses” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 557 U.S. 305 · 129 S. Ct. 2527 · 174 L. Ed. 2d 314 · 2009 U.S. LEXIS 4734
- Docket number
- 07-591
- Decided
- June 25, 2009
- Argued
- November 10, 2008
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Antonin Scalia
- Opinion assigned by
- John Paul Stevens
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Confrontation of witnesses
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to confront and cross-examine, compulsory process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Dissent |
Full case caption
Luis E. Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts
SCDB identifiers: case 2008-078, docket 2008-078-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Confrontation of witnesses”
- Mark A. Briscoe and Sheldon A. Cypress v. Virginia
- Giles v. California
- Michigan v. Richard Perry Bryant
- Donald Bullcoming v. New Mexico
- Marcus Hardy v. Irving L. Cross
- Williams v. Illinois
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to confront and cross-examine, compulsory process)
- Leonard Portuondo v. Ray Agard
- Clark v. Sweeney
- Crane v. Kentucky
- Berger v. California
- Roberts v. Russell
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- James Eric Moore v. United States
- Anthony Hedgpeth v. Michael Robert Pulido
- Deondery Chambers v. United States
- Bennie Dean Herring v. United States
- Oregon v. Thomas Eugene Ice
- Doug Waddington v. Cesar Sarausad
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