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Turner v. Murray

476 U.S. 28 · Decided April 30, 1986 · 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

Turner v. Murray was decided on April 30, 1986 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Extra-legal jury influences, voir dire” in the Criminal Procedure area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
476 U.S. 28 · 106 S. Ct. 1683 · 90 L. Ed. 2d 27 · 1986 U.S. LEXIS 148
Docket number
84-6646
Decided
April 30, 1986
Argued
December 12, 1985
Court era
Burger Court
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed and remanded
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
7–2
Majority opinion
Byron R. White
Opinion assigned by
Warren E. Burger
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Legal provision
Sixth Amendment (other provisions)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Justice William J. Brennan Jr.Special concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Byron R. WhiteMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice Thurgood MarshallSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Chief Justice Warren E. BurgerSpecial concurrence
Justice Harry A. BlackmunMajority
Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr.DissentWrote an opinion
Justice William H. RehnquistDissent
Justice John Paul StevensMajority
Justice Sandra Day O'ConnorMajority

Full case caption

Turner v. Murray, Director, Virginia Department of Corrections

SCDB identifiers: case 1985-076, docket 1985-076-01.

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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