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Ronald Rompilla v. Jeffrey A. Beard

545 U.S. 374 · Decided June 20, 2005 · 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

Ronald Rompilla v. Jeffrey A. Beard was decided on June 20, 2005 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
545 U.S. 374 · 125 S. Ct. 2456 · 162 L. Ed. 2d 360 · 2005 U.S. LEXIS 4846
Docket number
04-5462
Decided
June 20, 2005
Argued
January 18, 2005
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
5–4
Majority opinion
David H. Souter
Opinion assigned by
John Paul Stevens
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue (SCDB)
Right to counsel
Legal provision
Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Ronald Rompilla v. Jeffrey A. Beard, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections

SCDB identifiers: case 2004-065, docket 2004-065-01.

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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