United States v. Humberto Alvarez-Machain
Decided June 15, 1992. William Hubbs Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 91-712 · 504 U.S. 655 (1992) · Cited 323 times
Holding
The fact of respondent’s forcible abduction does not prohibit his trial in a United States court for violations of this country’s criminal laws.
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 · 6
- William Hubbs Rehnquist · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Anthony McLeod Kennedy
- Antonin Scalia
- Byron Raymond White
- Clarence Thomas
- David Hackett Souter
Dissenting · 3
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- John Paul Stevens · filed a dissenting opinion
- Sandra Day O'Connor
“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.
- Cook v. United States · 288 U.S. 102 (1933)
- Valentine v. United States Ex Rel. Neidecker · 299 U.S. 5 (1936)
- Frisbie v. Collins · 342 U.S. 519 (1952)
- Air France v. Saks · 470 U.S. 392 (1985)
- The Apollon. · 22 U.S. 362 (1824)
- United States v. United Mine Workers of America · 330 U.S. 258 (1947)
- Cannon v. University of Chicago · 441 U.S. 677 (1979)
- Olmstead v. United States · 277 U.S. 438 (1928)
- United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez · 494 U.S. 259 (1990)
- Ford v. United States · 273 U.S. 593 (1926)
- Cunard Steamship Co. v. Mellon · 262 U.S. 100 (1923)
- Perkins v. Elg · 307 U.S. 325 (1939)
- Factor v. Laubenheimer · 290 U.S. 276 (1933)
- Mahon v. Justice · 127 U.S. 700 (1888)
- Dodge v. United States · 272 U.S. 530 (1926)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain · 542 U.S. 692 (2004)
- Medina v. California · 505 U.S. 437 (1992)
- Sackett v. EPA · 598 U.S. 651 (2023)
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 (1992). 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).