Taylor v. Illinois
484 U.S. 400 · Decided January 25, 1988 · 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
Taylor v. Illinois was decided on January 25, 1988 by a vote of 5–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice John Paul Stevens wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Confrontation of witnesses” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 484 U.S. 400 · 108 S. Ct. 646 · 98 L. Ed. 2d 798 · 1988 U.S. LEXIS 573
- Docket number
- 86-5963
- Decided
- January 25, 1988
- Argued
- October 7, 1987
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- John Paul Stevens
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Confrontation of witnesses
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to confront and cross-examine, compulsory process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority |
Full case caption
Taylor v. Illinois
SCDB identifiers: case 1987-026, docket 1987-026-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Confrontation of witnesses”
- United States v. Owens
- Coy v. IowaLaw held unconstitutional
- Rock v. Arkansas
- Kentucky v. Stincer
- Cruz v. New York
- Richardson v. Marsh
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to confront and cross-examine, compulsory process)
- Crane v. Kentucky
- Leonard Portuondo v. Ray Agard
- Berger v. California
- Roberts v. Russell
- Clark v. Sweeney
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Carpenter v. United States
- Yates v. Aiken
- Lowenfield v. Phelps
- United States v. Owens
- United States v. Thomas O. Robinson, Jr.
- Frederick Mathews v. United States
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