Coleman et al. v. Alabama
Decided June 22, 1970. William Joseph Brennan Jr. delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 72 · 399 U.S. 1 (1970) · Cited 1,808 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
Majority · 1
Plurality · 1
- William Joseph Brennan Jr. · delivered the opinion of the Court
Concurring · 3
- Byron Raymond White · filed a concurring opinion
- Hugo Lafayette Black · filed a concurring opinion
- William Orville Douglas · filed a concurring opinion
Dissenting · 3
- John Marshall Harlan · filed a dissenting opinion
- Potter Stewart · filed a dissenting opinion
- Warren Earl Burger · 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.
- United States v. Wade · 388 U.S. 218 (1967)
- Miranda v. Arizona · 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
- Stovall v. Denno · 388 U.S. 293 (1967)
- Chapman v. California · 386 U.S. 18 (1967)
- Pointer v. Texas · 380 U.S. 400 (1965)
- Gilbert v. California · 388 U.S. 263 (1967)
- Hamilton v. Alabama · 368 U.S. 52 (1961)
- White v. Maryland · 373 U.S. 59 (1963)
- Gideon v. Wainwright · 372 U.S. 335 (1963)
- Powell v. Alabama · 287 U.S. 45 (1932)
- Orozco v. Texas · 394 U.S. 324 (1969)
- North Carolina v. Pearce · 395 U.S. 711 (1969)
- Simmons v. United States · 390 U.S. 377 (1968)
- Massiah v. United States · 377 U.S. 201 (1964)
- Sanders v. United States · 373 U.S. 1 (1963)
- Desist v. United States · 394 U.S. 244 (1969)
- Foster v. California · 394 U.S. 440 (1969)
- Welsh v. United States · 398 U.S. 333 (1970)
- Mathis v. United States · 391 U.S. 1 (1968)
- Kingsley International Pictures Corp. v. Regents of the University · 360 U.S. 684 (1959)
- Albertson v. Millard, Attorney General · 345 U.S. 242 (1953)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Adams v. Illinois · 405 U.S. 278 (1972)
- Rothgery v. Gillespie County · 554 U.S. 191 (2008)
- Manson v. Brathwaite · 432 U.S. 98 (1977)
- Kirby v. Illinois · 406 U.S. 682 (1972)
- United States v. Ash · 413 U.S. 300 (1973)
- United States v. Leon · 468 U.S. 897 (1984)
- Gerstein v. Pugh · 420 U.S. 103 (1975)
- United States v. Gouveia · 467 U.S. 180 (1984)
- Neil v. Biggers · 409 U.S. 188 (1972)
- Sandstrom v. Montana · 442 U.S. 510 (1979)
- Brewer v. Williams · 430 U.S. 387 (1977)
- MacKey v. United States · 401 U.S. 667 (1971)
- Rose v. Mitchell · 443 U.S. 545 (1979)
- Illinois v. Gates · 462 U.S. 213 (1983)
- Teague v. Lane · 489 U.S. 288 (1989)
- Arizona v. Fulminante · 499 U.S. 279 (1991)
- United States v. Young · 470 U.S. 1 (1985)
- Oregon v. Elstad · 470 U.S. 298 (1985)
- Estelle v. Smith · 451 U.S. 454 (1981)
- United States v. Hasting · 461 U.S. 499 (1983)
- Vasquez v. Hillery · 474 U.S. 254 (1986)
- Maine v. Moulton · 474 U.S. 159 (1985)
- United States v. Johnson · 457 U.S. 537 (1982)
- United States v. Henry · 447 U.S. 264 (1980)
- Rushen v. Spain · 464 U.S. 114 (1983)
- United States v. Mechanik · 475 U.S. 66 (1986)
- Chavez v. Martinez · 538 U.S. 760 (2003)
- Weber v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Co. · 406 U.S. 164 (1972)
- Michigan v. Harvey · 494 U.S. 344 (1990)
- Moore v. Illinois · 434 U.S. 220 (1977)
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).