Sanabria v. United States
437 U.S. 54 · Decided June 14, 1978 · 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
Sanabria v. United States was decided on June 14, 1978 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Double jeopardy” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 437 U.S. 54 · 98 S. Ct. 2170 · 57 L. Ed. 2d 43 · 1978 U.S. LEXIS 108
- Docket number
- 76-1040
- Decided
- June 14, 1978
- Argued
- November 8, 1977
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Double jeopardy
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fifth Amendment (double jeopardy)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Sanabria v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1977-112, docket 1977-112-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Double jeopardy”
- Burks v. United StatesAltered precedent
- Greene v. Massey
- Crist v. Bretz
- United States v. ScottAltered precedent
- United States v. Wheeler
- Arizona v. Washington
Cases on the same legal provision: Fifth Amendment (double jeopardy)
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Rinaldi v. United States
- Pennsylvania v. Mimms
- United States v. New York Telephone Co.
- Moore v. Illinois
- Smith v. Digmon
- Bordenkircher v. Hayes
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