Bounds, Correction Commissioner, et al. v. Smith et al.
Decided April 27, 1977. Thurgood Marshall delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 75-915 · 430 U.S. 817 (1977) · Cited 4,812 times
We don’t yet publish a summary of this opinion — read the official text below for the Court’s holding and reasoning.
How the Justices voted
Decided 6–3.
Majority · 5
- Thurgood Marshall · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- John Paul Stevens
- William Joseph Brennan Jr.
Concurring · 1
- Lewis Franklin Powell Jr. · filed a concurring opinion
Dissenting · 3
- Potter Stewart · filed a dissenting opinion
- Warren Earl Burger · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Hubbs Rehnquist · filed a dissenting opinion
“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.
Precedents cited
Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.
- Johnson v. Avery · 393 U.S. 483 (1969)
- Younger v. Gilmore · 404 U.S. 15 (1971)
- Ross v. Moffitt · 417 U.S. 600 (1974)
- Wolff v. McDonnell · 418 U.S. 539 (1974)
- Procunier v. Martinez · 416 U.S. 396 (1974)
- Griffin v. Illinois · 351 U.S. 12 (1956)
- Ex Parte Hull · 312 U.S. 546 (1941)
- Douglas v. California · 372 U.S. 353 (1963)
- United States v. MacCollom · 426 U.S. 317 (1976)
- Estelle v. Gamble · 429 U.S. 97 (1976)
- Gardner v. California · 393 U.S. 367 (1969)
- Haines v. Kerner · 404 U.S. 519 (1972)
- Schneckloth v. Bustamonte · 412 U.S. 218 (1973)
- Gideon v. Wainwright · 372 U.S. 335 (1963)
- Stone v. Powell · 428 U.S. 465 (1976)
- Meachum v. Fano · 427 U.S. 215 (1976)
- Cruz v. Beto · 405 U.S. 319 (1972)
- Pell v. Procunier · 417 U.S. 817 (1974)
- Price v. Johnston · 334 U.S. 266 (1948)
- National League of Cities v. Usery · 426 U.S. 833 (1976)
- Chaffin v. Stynchcombe · 412 U.S. 17 (1973)
- Britt v. North Carolina · 404 U.S. 226 (1971)
- Rinaldi v. Yeager · 384 U.S. 305 (1966)
- Draper v. Washington · 372 U.S. 487 (1963)
- Smith v. Bennett · 365 U.S. 708 (1961)
- Mayer v. City of Chicago · 404 U.S. 189 (1971)
- Lane v. Brown · 372 U.S. 477 (1963)
- Eskridge v. Washington State Board of Prison Terms & Paroles · 357 U.S. 214 (1958)
- Roberts v. LaVallee · 389 U.S. 40 (1967)
- Burns v. Ohio · 360 U.S. 252 (1959)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Lewis v. Casey · 518 U.S. 343 (1996)
- Murray v. Giarratano · 492 U.S. 1 (1989)
- Jones v. North Carolina Prisoners' Labor Union, Inc. · 433 U.S. 119 (1977)
- Bell v. Wolfish · 441 U.S. 520 (1979)
- Shaw v. Murphy · 532 U.S. 223 (2001)
- Hudson v. Palmer · 468 U.S. 517 (1984)
- Greenholtz v. Inmates of the Nebraska Penal & Correctional Complex · 442 U.S. 1 (1979)
- Christopher v. Harbury · 536 U.S. 403 (2002)
- Cleavinger v. Saxner · 474 U.S. 193 (1985)
- Scott v. Illinois · 440 U.S. 367 (1979)
- Connecticut Board of Pardons v. Dumschat · 452 U.S. 458 (1981)
- Bruce v. Samuels · 577 U.S. 1021 (2016)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Source: the U.S. Reports via govinfo.gov; authoring Justice and vote lineup from the Supreme Court Database (Washington University). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).