California v. Green
399 U.S. 149 · Decided June 23, 1970 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
California v. Green was decided on June 23, 1970 by a vote of 6–1. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Confrontation of witnesses” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 399 U.S. 149 · 90 S. Ct. 1930 · 26 L. Ed. 2d 489 · 1970 U.S. LEXIS 14
- Docket number
- 387
- Decided
- June 23, 1970
- Argued
- April 20, 1970
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–1
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Confrontation of witnesses
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to confront and cross-examine, compulsory process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Did not participate: Thurgood Marshall, Harry A. Blackmun.
Full case caption
California v. Green
SCDB identifiers: case 1969-123, docket 1969-123-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Confrontation of witnesses”
- Illinois v. Allen
- Dutton v. Evans
- Nelson v. O'Neil
- Harrington v. California
- Schneble v. Florida
- Mancusi v. Stubbs
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to confront and cross-examine, compulsory process)
- Berger v. California
- Roberts v. Russell
- Crane v. Kentucky
- Leonard Portuondo v. Ray Agard
- Clark v. Sweeney
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Debacker v. Brainard
- United States v. Knox
- Minor v. United States
- Morales v. New York
- Molinaro v. New Jersey
- Sigler v. Parker
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error