Vitek v. Jones
445 U.S. 480 · Decided March 25, 1980 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Vitek v. Jones was decided on March 25, 1980 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights” in the Due Process area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 445 U.S. 480 · 100 S. Ct. 1254 · 63 L. Ed. 2d 552 · 1980 U.S. LEXIS 31
- Docket number
- 78-1155
- Decided
- March 25, 1980
- Argued
- December 5, 1979
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights
- Issue area
- Due Process
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Held unconstitutional
- A state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority |
Full case caption
Vitek, Correctional Director, et al. v. Jones
SCDB identifiers: case 1979-063, docket 1979-063-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights”
- Greenholtz v. Inmates of the Nebraska Penal and Correction Complex
- Bell v. Wolfish
- Connecticut Board of Pardons v. Dumschat
- Howe v. Smith
- Jago v. Van Curen
- Bounds v. Smith
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Mobil Oil Corp. v. Commissioner of Taxes of Vermont
- World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson
- Rush v. Savchuk
- Martinez v. California
- Exxon Corp. v. Department of Revenue of Wisconsin
- Hicks v. Oklahoma
Same Term, same area (Due Process)
- Andrus v. Allard
- Kaiser Aetna v. United States
- Vaughn v. Vermilion Corp.
- World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson
- Rush v. Savchuk
- Marshall v. Jerrico, Inc.
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