Preiser, Correction Commissioner, et al. v. Rodriguez et al.

Decided May 7, 1973. Potter Stewart delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 71-1369 · 411 U.S. 475 (1973) · Cited 9,100 times

Holding

When a state prisoner challenges the fact or duration of his physical imprisonment and by way of relief seeks a determination that he is entitled to immediate release or a speedier release, his sole federal remedy is a writ of habeas corpus.

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.

“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.

• WILWORDING Et Al. v. SWENSON, WARDEN · 404 U.S. 249 (1971)
• Monroe v. Pape · 365 U.S. 167 (1961)
• Fay v. Noia · 372 U.S. 391 (1963)
• Houghton v. Shafer · 392 U.S. 639 (1968)
• McNeese v. Board of Education for Community Unit School District 187 Cahokia · 373 U.S. 668 (1963)
• Younger v. Harris · 401 U.S. 37 (1971)
• Haines v. Kerner · 404 U.S. 519 (1972)
• Braden v. 30th Judicial Circuit Court of Kentucky · 410 U.S. 484 (1973)
• Carafas v. LaVallee · 391 U.S. 234 (1968)
• England v. Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners · 375 U.S. 411 (1964)
• Humphrey v. Cady · 405 U.S. 504 (1972)
• Cooper v. Pate · 378 U.S. 546 (1964)
• Damico v. California · 389 U.S. 416 (1967)
• Jones v. Cunningham · 371 U.S. 236 (1963)
• Johnson v. Avery · 393 U.S. 483 (1969)
• Zwickler v. Koota · 389 U.S. 241 (1967)
• Peyton v. Rowe · 391 U.S. 54 (1968)
• Morrissey v. Brewer · 408 U.S. 471 (1972)
• Johnson v. Zerbst · 304 U.S. 458 (1938)
• King v. Smith · 392 U.S. 309 (1968)
• Darr v. Burford · 339 U.S. 200 (1950)
• Ex Parte Hawk · 321 U.S. 114 (1944)
• Parisi v. Davidson · 405 U.S. 34 (1972)
• Townsend v. Sain · 372 U.S. 293 (1963)
• Cruz v. Beto · 405 U.S. 319 (1972)
• Von Moltke v. Gillies · 332 U.S. 708 (1948)
• Ex Parte Lange · 85 U.S. 163 (1874)
• Jacobellis v. Ohio · 378 U.S. 184 (1964)
• Price v. Johnston · 334 U.S. 266 (1948)
• Atlantic Coast Line Railroad v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers · 398 U.S. 281 (1970)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Wilkinson v. Dotson · 544 U.S. 74 (2005)
• Heck v. Humphrey · 512 U.S. 477 (1994)
• Wolff v. McDonnell · 418 U.S. 539 (1974)
• Porter v. Nussle · 534 U.S. 516 (2002)
• Allen v. McCurry · 449 U.S. 90 (1980)
• District Attorney's Office for the Third Judicial District v. Osborne · 557 U.S. 52 (2009)
• Department of Homeland Security v. Thuraissigiam · 591 U.S. 103 (2020)
• McDonough v. Smith · 588 U.S. 109 (2019)
• McCarthy v. Bronson · 500 U.S. 136 (1991)
• Lewis v. Casey · 518 U.S. 343 (1996)
• Ziglar v. Abbasi · 582 U.S. 120 (2017)
• Brown v. General Services Administration · 425 U.S. 820 (1976)
• Browder v. Director, Dept. of Corrections of Ill. · 434 U.S. 257 (1978)
• Trevino v. Thaler · 569 U.S. 413 (2013)
• Banister v. Davis · 590 U.S. 504 (2020)
• Lindh v. Murphy · 521 U.S. 320 (1997)
• Muhammad v. Close · 540 U.S. 749 (2004)
• Cleavinger v. Saxner · 474 U.S. 193 (1985)
• Nelson v. Campbell · 541 U.S. 637 (2004)
• Fair Assessment in Real Estate Assn., Inc. v. McNary · 454 U.S. 100 (1981)
• Hill v. McDonough · 547 U.S. 573 (2006)
• Calderon v. Ashmus · 523 U.S. 740 (1998)
• Schneckloth v. Bustamonte · 412 U.S. 218 (1973)
• Bell v. Wolfish · 441 U.S. 520 (1979)
• Woodford v. Ngo · 548 U.S. 81 (2006)
• Gerstein v. Pugh · 420 U.S. 103 (1975)
• Meachum v. Fano · 427 U.S. 215 (1976)
• O'Shea v. Littleton · 414 U.S. 488 (1974)
• Spencer v. Kemna · 523 U.S. 1 (1998)
• United States v. Cotton · 535 U.S. 625 (2002)

Official text

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

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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).