Gustafson v. Florida
Decided December 11, 1973. William Hubbs Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 71-1669 · 414 U.S. 260 (1973) · Cited 699 times
Holding
The full search of the person of the suspect made incident to a lawful custodial arrest did not violate the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments, United States v.
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 6–3.
Majority · 4
- William Hubbs Rehnquist · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- Warren Earl Burger
Concurring · 2
- Lewis Franklin Powell Jr. · filed a concurring opinion
- Potter Stewart · filed a concurring opinion
Dissenting · 3
- Thurgood Marshall · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Joseph Brennan Jr.
- William Orville Douglas
“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.
- Terry v. Ohio · 392 U.S. 1 (1968)
- Chimel v. California · 395 U.S. 752 (1969)
- Adams v. Williams · 407 U.S. 143 (1972)
- Sibron v. New York · 392 U.S. 40 (1968)
- Warden, Maryland Penitentiary v. Hayden · 387 U.S. 294 (1967)
- Agnello v. United States · 269 U.S. 20 (1925)
- Abel v. United States · 362 U.S. 217 (1960)
- Harris v. United States · 331 U.S. 145 (1947)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Whren v. United States · 517 U.S. 806 (1996)
- Pennsylvania v. Mimms · 434 U.S. 106 (1977)
- Robbins v. California · 453 U.S. 420 (1981)
- Michigan v. Long · 463 U.S. 1032 (1983)
- New York v. Belton · 453 U.S. 454 (1981)
- United States v. Chadwick · 433 U.S. 1 (1977)
- New Jersey v. T. L. O. · 469 U.S. 325 (1985)
- Michigan v. DeFillippo · 443 U.S. 31 (1979)
- Atwater v. City of Lago Vista · 532 U.S. 318 (2001)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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William Hubbs Rehnquist’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1973). 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).