Lynch v. Overholser
369 U.S. 705 · Decided May 21, 1962 · 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
Lynch v. Overholser was decided on May 21, 1962 by a vote of 6–1. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice John M. Harlan II wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Statutory construction of criminal laws, miscellaneous” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 369 U.S. 705 · 82 S. Ct. 1063 · 8 L. Ed. 2d 211 · 1962 U.S. LEXIS 1228
- Docket number
- 159
- Decided
- May 21, 1962
- Argued
- January 15, 1962
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–1
- Majority opinion
- John M. Harlan II
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- District of Columbia statutes
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Did not participate: Felix Frankfurter, Byron R. White.
Full case caption
Lynch v. Overholser, Hospital Superintendent
SCDB identifiers: case 1961-075, docket 1961-075-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Statutory construction of criminal laws, miscellaneous”
- Milanovich et Ux. v. United States
- United States v. Healy
- Carroll v. United States
- United States v. American Freightways Co.
- United States v. Turley
- Tinder v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: District of Columbia statutes
- General Motors Corp. v. District of Columbia
- District of Columbia v. John R. Thompson Co., Inc.
- District of Columbia v. Little
- Graham v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen & Enginemen
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Hamilton v. Alabama
- Hodges v. United States
- Hill v. United States
- Mitchell v. United States
- Chewning v. Cunningham
- Machibroda 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