United States v. Monsanto
491 U.S. 600 · Decided June 22, 1989 · 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. Monsanto was decided on June 22, 1989 by a vote of 5–4. 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 “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 491 U.S. 600 · 109 S. Ct. 2657 · 105 L. Ed. 2d 512 · 1989 U.S. LEXIS 3132
- Docket number
- 88-454
- Decided
- June 22, 1989
- Argued
- March 21, 1989
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Right to counsel
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- 21 U.S.C. § 853
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority |
Full case caption
United States v. Monsanto
SCDB identifiers: case 1988-130, docket 1988-130-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- Caplin & Drysdale v. United States
- Powell v. Texas
- Perry v. Leeke
- Michigan v. Tyris Lemont Harvey
- Patterson v. Illinois
- Satterwhite v. Texas
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Pennsylvania v. Bruder
- Lockhart, A. L. v. Nelson
- Olden v. Kentucky
- Perry v. Leeke
- Florida v. Riley
- United States v. Broce
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