Lockhart, Director, Arkansas Department of Corrections v. McCree
Decided May 5, 1986. William Hubbs Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 84-1865 · 476 U.S. 162 (1986) · Cited 1,649 times
Holding
The Constitution does not prohibit the removal for cause, prior to the guilt phase of a bifurcated capital trial, of prospective jurors whose opposition to the death penalty is so strong that it would prevent or substantially impair the performance of their duties as jurors at the sentencing phase of the trial.
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 · 5
- William Hubbs Rehnquist · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Lewis Franklin Powell Jr.
- Sandra Day O'Connor
- Warren Earl Burger
Concurring · 1
Dissenting · 3
- John Paul Stevens
- Thurgood Marshall · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Joseph Brennan Jr.
“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.
- Witherspoon v. Illinois · 391 U.S. 510 (1968)
- Adams v. Texas · 448 U.S. 38 (1980)
- Ballew v. Georgia · 435 U.S. 223 (1978)
- Wainwright v. Witt · 469 U.S. 412 (1985)
- Taylor v. Louisiana · 419 U.S. 522 (1975)
- Duren v. Missouri · 439 U.S. 357 (1979)
- Irvin v. Dowd · 366 U.S. 717 (1961)
- Beck v. Alabama · 447 U.S. 625 (1980)
- Gregg v. Georgia · 428 U.S. 153 (1976)
- Wainwright v. Sykes · 433 U.S. 72 (1977)
- Lockett v. Ohio · 438 U.S. 586 (1978)
- Duncan v. Louisiana · 391 U.S. 145 (1968)
- Smith v. Phillips · 455 U.S. 209 (1982)
- Bumper v. North Carolina · 391 U.S. 543 (1968)
- Tumey v. Ohio · 273 U.S. 510 (1927)
- Jurek v. Texas · 428 U.S. 262 (1976)
- Reynolds v. United States · 98 U.S. 145 (1879)
- Williams v. Florida · 399 U.S. 78 (1970)
- Estes v. Texas · 381 U.S. 532 (1965)
- Remmer v. United States · 347 U.S. 227 (1954)
- Castaneda v. Partida · 430 U.S. 482 (1977)
- Rideau v. Louisiana · 373 U.S. 723 (1963)
- Spaziano v. Florida · 468 U.S. 447 (1984)
- Peters v. Kiff · 407 U.S. 493 (1972)
- Ristaino v. Ross · 424 U.S. 589 (1976)
- Tison v. Arizona · 459 U.S. 882 (1982)
- Fay v. New York · 332 U.S. 261 (1947)
- Pope v. United States · 392 U.S. 651 (1968)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Buchanan v. Kentucky · 483 U.S. 402 (1987)
- Holland v. Illinois · 493 U.S. 474 (1990)
- Franklin v. Lynaugh · 487 U.S. 164 (1988)
- Morgan v. Illinois · 504 U.S. 719 (1992)
- Uttecht v. Brown · 551 U.S. 1 (2007)
- Teague v. Lane · 489 U.S. 288 (1989)
- Ross v. Oklahoma · 487 U.S. 81 (1988)
- Gray v. Mississippi · 481 U.S. 648 (1987)
- Stanford v. Kentucky · 492 U.S. 361 (1989)
- Oregon v. Guzek · 546 U.S. 517 (2006)
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 (1986). 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).