City of West Covina v. Lawrence Perkins et al.

Decided January 13, 1999. Anthony McLeod Kennedy delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 97-1230 · 525 U.S. 234 (1999) · Cited 212 times

Holding

When police seize property for a criminal investigation, the Due Process Clause does not require them to provide the owner with notice of state-law remedies for the property’s return.

The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.

How the Justices voted

Decided 9–0.

“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.

• Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division v. Craft · 436 U.S. 1 (1978)
• Gerstein v. Pugh · 420 U.S. 103 (1975)
• Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co. · 339 U.S. 306 (1950)
• Hudson v. Palmer · 468 U.S. 517 (1984)
• Fuentes v. Shevin · 407 U.S. 67 (1972)
• Wilson v. Arkansas · 514 U.S. 927 (1995)
• Schroeder v. City of New York · 371 U.S. 208 (1962)
• Atkins v. Parker · 472 U.S. 115 (1985)
• Reetz v. Michigan · 188 U.S. 505 (1903)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

Explore from here

Anthony McLeod Kennedy’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1999). 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).