Tison v. Arizona

Decided April 21, 1987. Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 84-6075 · 481 U.S. 137 (1987) · Cited 1,617 times

Holding

Although petitioners neither intended to kill the victims nor inflicted the fatal wounds, the record might support a finding that they had the culpable mental state of reckless indifference to human life.

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 5–4.

“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.

• Enmund v. Florida · 458 U.S. 782 (1982)
• Lockett v. Ohio · 438 U.S. 586 (1978)
• Cabana v. Bullock · 474 U.S. 376 (1986)
• Coker v. Georgia · 433 U.S. 584 (1977)
• Gregg v. Georgia · 428 U.S. 153 (1976)
• Furman v. Georgia · 408 U.S. 238 (1972)
• Moore v. Dempsey · 261 U.S. 86 (1923)
• Solem v. Helm · 463 U.S. 277 (1983)
• Godfrey v. Georgia · 446 U.S. 420 (1980)
• Eddings v. Oklahoma · 455 U.S. 104 (1982)
• Morissette v. United States · 342 U.S. 246 (1952)
• Woodson v. North Carolina · 428 U.S. 280 (1976)
• Robinson v. California · 370 U.S. 660 (1962)
• Trop v. Dulles · 356 U.S. 86 (1958)
• United States v. United States Gypsum Co. · 438 U.S. 422 (1978)
• McGautha v. California · 402 U.S. 183 (1971)
• Tison v. Arizona · 459 U.S. 882 (1982)
• Poland v. Arizona · 476 U.S. 147 (1986)
• O'Neil v. Vermont · 144 U.S. 323 (1892)
• Edmonds v. Virginia · 474 U.S. 975 (1985)
• Silkwood v. Kerr-McGee Corp. · 465 U.S. 1074 (1984)

Cited by

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

• South Carolina v. Gathers · 490 U.S. 805 (1989)
• Kennedy v. Louisiana · 554 U.S. 407 (2008)
• Schad v. Arizona · 501 U.S. 624 (1991)
• Stanford v. Kentucky · 492 U.S. 361 (1989)
• Hopkins v. Reeves · 524 U.S. 88 (1998)
• Payne v. Tennessee · 501 U.S. 808 (1991)
• Miller v. Alabama · 567 U.S. 460 (2012)
• Penry v. Lynaugh · 492 U.S. 302 (1989)
• Elonis v. United States · 575 U.S. 723 (2015)
• Counterman v. Colorado · 600 U.S. 66 (2023)
• Ring v. Arizona · 536 U.S. 584 (2002)
• Booth v. Maryland · 482 U.S. 496 (1987)
• Sumner v. Shuman · 483 U.S. 66 (1987)
• Lankford v. Idaho · 500 U.S. 110 (1991)
• Gutierrez v. Saenz · 606 U.S. 305 (2025)
• Harmelin v. Michigan · 501 U.S. 957 (1991)
• Roper v. Simmons · 543 U.S. 551 (2005)
• Atkins v. Virginia · 536 U.S. 304 (2002)
• Walton v. Arizona · 497 U.S. 639 (1990)
• Thompson v. Oklahoma · 487 U.S. 815 (1988)
• Wisconsin v. Mitchell · 508 U.S. 476 (1993)
• Richmond v. Lewis · 506 U.S. 40 (1992)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1987). 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).