Simmons v. United States
390 U.S. 377 · Decided March 18, 1968 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Simmons v. United States was decided on March 18, 1968 unanimously (8–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision in part, reversed or vacated it in part, and remanded the case. Justice John M. Harlan II wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Discovery and inspection in criminal cases” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 390 U.S. 377 · 88 S. Ct. 967 · 19 L. Ed. 2d 1247 · 1968 U.S. LEXIS 2167
- Docket number
- 55
- Decided
- March 18, 1968
- Argued
- January 15, 1968
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed and reversed (or vacated) in part and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- John M. Harlan II
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Discovery and inspection in criminal cases
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Jencks Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Majority |
Did not participate: Thurgood Marshall.
Full case caption
Simmons et al. v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1967-083, docket 1967-083-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Discovery and inspection in criminal cases”
- Harris, U.S. District Judge (Walker v. Nelson
- Smith v. Pennsylvania
- Evola v. United States
- Campbell v. United States
- Brady v. Maryland
- United States v. Nixon
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Bitter v. United States
- Roberts v. United States
- Wood v. United States
- Pinto v. Pierce
- Beecher v. Alabama
- Garner v. Yeager
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