County of Riverside and Cois Byrd v. McLaughlin
500 U.S. 44 · Decided May 13, 1991 · 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
County of Riverside and Cois Byrd v. McLaughlin was decided on May 13, 1991 by a vote of 5–4. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 500 U.S. 44 · 111 S. Ct. 1661 · 114 L. Ed. 2d 49 · 1991 U.S. LEXIS 2528
- Docket number
- 89-1817
- Decided
- May 13, 1991
- Argued
- January 7, 1991
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Sandra Day O'Connor
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Article III, Section 2, Paragraph 1 (case or controversy requirement)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority |
Full case caption
County of Riverside and Cois Byrd, Sheriff of Riverside County v. McLaughlin, Donald Lee, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1990-069, docket 1990-069-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- California v. Hodari D.
- Illinois v. Rodriguez
- Terry Brice Horton v. California
- New York v. Harris
- Minnesota v. Olson
- Smith v. Ohio
Cases on the same legal provision: Article III, Section 2, Paragraph 1 (case or controversy requirement)
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- Whitmore v. Arkansas
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Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Robert Lee Shell v. Mississippi
- Tommy Cage v. Louisiana
- R. Dobie Langenkamp v. C. A. Culp
- Raymond J. Moskal, Sr. v. United States
- Robert S. Minnick v. Mississippi
- Richard Demarest v. James
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