United States v. Crews
445 U.S. 463 · Decided March 25, 1980 · 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
United States v. Crews was decided on March 25, 1980 unanimously (8–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice William J. Brennan Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Line-up identification” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 445 U.S. 463 · 100 S. Ct. 1244 · 63 L. Ed. 2d 537 · 1980 U.S. LEXIS 1293
- Docket number
- 78-777
- Decided
- March 25, 1980
- Argued
- October 31, 1979
- 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
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Line-up identification
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Exclusionary rule (Fourth Amendment)
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Concurrence | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Special concurrence | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority |
Did not participate: Thurgood Marshall.
Full case caption
United States v. Crews
SCDB identifiers: case 1979-062, docket 1979-062-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Line-up identification”
- Watkins v. Sowders
- Moore v. Illinois
- Manson v. Brathwaite
- United States v. Ash
- Kirby v. Illinois
- Foster v. California
Cases on the same legal provision: Exclusionary rule (Fourth Amendment)
- United States v. Havens
- United States v. Caceres
- United States v. Ceccolini
- United States v. Janis
- United States v. Leon
- Massachusetts v. Sheppard
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Pilon v. Bordenkircher
- Perrin v. United States
- Ybarra v. Illinois
- Thompson v. United States
- United States v. Bailey
- Tague v. Louisiana
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