Whitmore, Individually and as Next Friend of Simmons v. Arkansas et al.

Decided April 24, 1990. William Hubbs Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 88-7146 · 495 U.S. 149 (1990) · Cited 2,590 times

Holding

Whitmore lacks standing to proceed in this Court.

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 7–2.

“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.

• Rosenberg v. United States · 346 U.S. 273 (1953)
• United States v. Students Challenging Regulatory Agency Procedures (SCRAP) · 412 U.S. 669 (1973)
• Gilmore v. Utah · 429 U.S. 1012 (1976)
• Gregg v. Georgia · 428 U.S. 153 (1976)
• Valley Forge Christian College v. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Inc. · 454 U.S. 464 (1982)
• Warth v. Seldin · 422 U.S. 490 (1975)
• O'Shea v. Littleton · 414 U.S. 488 (1974)
• City of Los Angeles v. Lyons · 461 U.S. 95 (1983)
• Zant v. Stephens · 462 U.S. 862 (1983)
• Simon v. Eastern Kentucky Welfare Rights Organization · 426 U.S. 26 (1976)
• Heckler v. Chaney · 470 U.S. 821 (1985)
• Pulley v. Harris · 465 U.S. 37 (1984)
• Proffitt v. Florida · 428 U.S. 242 (1976)
• Schlesinger v. Reservists Committee to Stop the War · 418 U.S. 208 (1974)
• Diamond v. Charles · 476 U.S. 54 (1986)
• United States v. Richardson · 418 U.S. 166 (1974)
• Singer v. United States · 380 U.S. 24 (1965)
• Harlow v. Fitzgerald · 457 U.S. 800 (1982)
• Anderson v. Creighton · 483 U.S. 635 (1987)
• Teague v. Lane · 489 U.S. 288 (1989)
• Furman v. Georgia · 408 U.S. 238 (1972)
• Allen v. Wright · 468 U.S. 737 (1984)
• Barefoot v. Estelle · 463 U.S. 880 (1983)
• Parklane Hosiery Co. v. Shore · 439 U.S. 322 (1979)
• Singleton v. Wulff · 428 U.S. 106 (1976)
• Eddings v. Oklahoma · 455 U.S. 104 (1982)
• Woodson v. North Carolina · 428 U.S. 280 (1976)
• Enmund v. Florida · 458 U.S. 782 (1982)
• Dombrowski v. Pfister · 380 U.S. 479 (1965)
• McCleskey v. Kemp · 481 U.S. 279 (1987)

Cited by

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

• Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency · 549 U.S. 497 (2007)
• Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife · 504 U.S. 555 (1992)
• Clapper v. Amnesty International USA · 568 U.S. 398 (2013)
• Thole v. U. S. Bank N. A. · 590 U.S. 538 (2020)
• Hollingsworth v. Perry · 570 U.S. 693 (2013)
• Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins · 578 U.S. 330 (2016)
• McConnell v. Federal Election Commission · 540 U.S. 93 (2003)
• California v. Texas · 593 U.S. 659 (2021)
• Steel Co. v. Citizens for a Better Environment · 523 U.S. 83 (1998)
• DaimlerChrysler Corp. v. Cuno · 547 U.S. 332 (2006)
• Wyoming v. Oklahoma · 502 U.S. 437 (1992)
• American Legion v. American Humanist Assn. · 588 U.S. 29 (2019)
• Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. Laidlaw Environmental Services (TOC), Inc. · 528 U.S. 167 (2000)
• TransUnion LLC v. Ramirez · 594 U.S. 413 (2021)
• Arizonans for Official English v. Arizona · 520 U.S. 43 (1997)
• Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States Ex Rel. Stevens · 529 U.S. 765 (2000)
• Cruzan Ex Rel. Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health · 497 U.S. 261 (1990)
• National Park Hospitality Association v. Department of the Interior · 538 U.S. 803 (2003)
• United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 751 v. Brown Group, Inc. · 517 U.S. 544 (1996)
• Clinton v. City of New York · 524 U.S. 417 (1998)
• Lonchar v. Thomas · 517 U.S. 314 (1996)
• Badgerow v. Walters · 596 U.S. 1 (2022)
• Department of Commerce v. United States House of Representatives · 525 U.S. 316 (1999)
• Izumi Seimitsu Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha v. U. S. Philips Corp. · 510 U.S. 27 (1993)
• Diamond Alternative Energy, LLC v. EPA · 606 U.S. 100 (2025)

Official text

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

Explore from here

William Hubbs Rehnquist’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1990). 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).