United States v. Tsarnaev

Decided March 4, 2022. Clarence Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 20-443 · 595 U.S. 302 (2022) · Cited 25 times

Holding

The judgment of the Court of Appeals vacating Tsarnaev’s capital sentences is reversed.

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. The lineup is the syllabus’s disposition of who wrote and joined each opinion. Source: the opinion’s syllabus (supremecourt.gov).

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.

• Mu'Min v. Virginia · 500 U.S. 415 (1991)
• Skilling v. United States · 561 U.S. 358 (2010)
• Lockett v. Ohio · 438 U.S. 586 (1978)
• United States v. Payner · 447 U.S. 727 (1980)
• Gregg v. Georgia · 428 U.S. 153 (1976)
• General Electric Co. v. Joiner · 522 U.S. 136 (1997)
• Tennard v. Dretke, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division · 542 U.S. 274 (2004)
• Skipper v. South Carolina · 476 U.S. 1 (1986)
• Connors v. United States · 158 U.S. 408 (1895)
• Thomas v. Arn · 474 U.S. 140 (1985)
• Kyles v. Whitley · 514 U.S. 419 (1995)
• Zant v. Stephens · 462 U.S. 862 (1983)
• United States v. Hasting · 461 U.S. 499 (1983)
• United States v. Abel · 469 U.S. 45 (1984)
• Ristaino v. Ross · 424 U.S. 589 (1976)
• Eddings v. Oklahoma · 455 U.S. 104 (1982)
• Cupp v. Naughten · 414 U.S. 141 (1973)
• McNabb v. United States · 318 U.S. 332 (1943)
• McKoy v. North Carolina · 494 U.S. 433 (1990)
• Glossip v. Gross · 576 U.S. 863 (2015)
• Johnson v. Texas · 509 U.S. 350 (1993)
• Ham v. South Carolina · 409 U.S. 524 (1973)
• Ortega-Rodriguez v. United States · 507 U.S. 234 (1993)
• Oregon v. Guzek · 546 U.S. 517 (2006)
• Gall v. United States · 552 U.S. 38 (2007)
• Link v. Wabash Railroad · 370 U.S. 626 (1962)
• Miller v. Alabama · 567 U.S. 460 (2012)
• Chambers v. Nasco, Inc. · 501 U.S. 32 (1991)
• Cuyler v. Sullivan · 446 U.S. 335 (1980)
• Payne v. Tennessee · 501 U.S. 808 (1991)

Official text

Read the official opinion (PDF, supremecourt.gov)

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2022). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-08-15. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).