Massachusetts v. Painten
389 U.S. 560 · Decided January 15, 1968 · 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
Massachusetts v. Painten was decided on January 15, 1968 by a vote of 6–3. SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” The decision was issued per curiam (an unsigned opinion of the Court). SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 389 U.S. 560 · 88 S. Ct. 660 · 19 L. Ed. 2d 770 · 1968 U.S. LEXIS 2715
- Docket number
- 37
- Decided
- January 15, 1968
- Argued
- October 18, 1967
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Writ improvidently granted
- Type of law
- Other
- 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 | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority |
Full case caption
Massachusetts v. Painten
SCDB identifiers: case 1967-055, docket 1967-055-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- Kolod v. United States
- Katz v. United StatesAltered precedent
- Roberts v. United States
- Sabbath v. United States
- Terry v. Ohio
- Sibron v. New York
Cases on the same legal provision: Writ improvidently granted
- Whitney v. Florida
- Umans v. United States
- Johnson v. Massachusetts
- Hanner v. Demarcus et Ux.
- Turner v. New York
- Palmieri v. Florida
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Bitter v. United States
- Roberts v. United States
- Wood v. United States
- Pinto v. Pierce
- Beecher v. Alabama
- Garner v. Yeager
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