Rathbun v. United States
355 U.S. 107 · Decided December 9, 1957 · 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
Rathbun v. United States was decided on December 9, 1957 by a vote of 7–2. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote the 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
- 355 U.S. 107 · 78 S. Ct. 161 · 2 L. Ed. 2d 134 · 1957 U.S. LEXIS 1681
- Docket number
- 30
- Decided
- December 9, 1957
- Argued
- October 29, 1957
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Earl Warren
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Communications Act of 1934
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority |
Full case caption
Rathbun v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1957-014, docket 1957-014-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- Benanti v. United States
- Miller v. United States
- Giordenello v. United States
- Jones v. United States
- Joines v. United States
- Giordenello v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Communications Act of 1934
- United States v. Radio Corporation of America
- United States v. Storer Broadcasting Co.
- Farmers Educational & Cooperative Union of America v. Wday, Inc.
- Federal Communications Commission v. Allentown Broadcasting Corp.
- Federal Communications Commission v. RCA Communications, Inc.
- Federal Communications Commission v. Schreiber
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Scales v. United States.
- Lightfoot v. United States.
- Alcorta v. Texas
- Yates v. United States
- Benanti v. United States
- Moore v. Michigan
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