Reck v. Pate
367 U.S. 433 · Decided June 12, 1961 · 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
Reck v. Pate was decided on June 12, 1961 by a vote of 7–2. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Involuntary confession” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 367 U.S. 433 · 81 S. Ct. 1541 · 6 L. Ed. 2d 948 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 972
- Docket number
- 181
- Decided
- June 12, 1961
- Argued
- April 19, 1961
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Involuntary confession
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- 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 Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Reck v. Pate, Warden
SCDB identifiers: case 1960-127, docket 1960-127-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Involuntary confession”
- Culombe v. Connecticut
- Coppola v. United States
- Rogers v. Richmond
- Gallegos v. Colorado
- Blackburn v. Alabama
- Lynumn v. Illinois
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Konigsberg v. State Bar of California
- In re Anastaplo
- Cohen v. Hurley
- Western Union Telegraph Co. v. Pennsylvania
- Garner v. Louisiana
- Cramp v. Board of Public Instruction of Orange CountyLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Scott v. California
- Reina v. United States
- Callanan v. United States
- Carbo v. United States
- Campbell v. United States
- McNeal v. Culver
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