Morrissey v. Brewer
408 U.S. 471 · Decided June 29, 1972 · 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
Morrissey v. Brewer was decided on June 29, 1972 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights” in the Due Process area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 408 U.S. 471 · 92 S. Ct. 2593 · 33 L. Ed. 2d 484 · 1972 U.S. LEXIS 19
- Docket number
- 71-5103
- Decided
- June 29, 1972
- Argued
- April 11, 1972
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Warren E. Burger
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights
- Issue area
- Due Process
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority |
Full case caption
Morrissey et al. v. Brewer, Warden, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1971-171, docket 1971-171-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights”
- Younger v. Gilmore
- McGinnis v. Royster
- Arciniega v. Freeman, U.S. Marshal
- Hurtado v. United States
- Marshall v. United States
- Wolff v. McDonnell
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Board of Regents of State Colleges v. Roth
- Perry v. Sindermann
- Moore v. Illinois
- McNeil v. Director
- Fuentes v. ShevinLaw held unconstitutional
- Stanley v. IllinoisLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (Due Process)
- Arciniega v. Freeman, U.S. Marshal
- Younger v. Gilmore
- Jennings v. Mahoney
- Groppi v. Leslie
- Giglio v. United States
- Papachristou v. City of JacksonvilleLaw held unconstitutional
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