United States v. Knotts
460 U.S. 276 · Decided March 2, 1983 · 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. Knotts was decided on March 2, 1983 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 460 U.S. 276 · 103 S. Ct. 1081 · 75 L. Ed. 2d 55 · 1983 U.S. LEXIS 135
- Docket number
- 81-1802
- Decided
- March 2, 1983
- Argued
- December 6, 1982
- 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
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourth Amendment
- 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. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
United States v. Knotts
SCDB identifiers: case 1982-038, docket 1982-038-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- Florida v. Royer
- Illinois v. Gates et Ux.Altered precedent
- United States v. Villamonte-Marquez
- Illinois v. Lafayette
- United States v. Place
- Illinois v. Andreas
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- Texas v. Brown
- Michigan v. LongAltered precedent
- Michigan v. Thomas
- United States v. RossAltered precedent
- Florida v. Meyers
- Robbins v. California
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Anderson v. Harless
- Wyrick v. Fields
- Pillsbury Co. v. Conboy
- Missouri v. Hunter
- Marshall v. Lonberger
- South Dakota v. Neville
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