Davis v. North Carolina
384 U.S. 737 · Decided June 20, 1966 · 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
Davis v. North Carolina was decided on June 20, 1966 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Involuntary confession” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 384 U.S. 737 · 86 S. Ct. 1761 · 16 L. Ed. 2d 895 · 1966 U.S. LEXIS 1128
- Docket number
- 815
- Decided
- June 20, 1966
- Argued
- April 28, 1966
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Earl Warren
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Involuntary confession
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Majority |
Full case caption
Davis v. North Carolina
SCDB identifiers: case 1965-131, docket 1965-131-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Involuntary confession”
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Schmerber v. California
- Elfbrandt v. RussellLaw held unconstitutional
- Pate v. Robinson
- Brown v. Louisiana
- Giaccio v. PennsylvaniaLaw held unconstitutional
- Shuttlesworth v. City of Birmingham
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- First Security National Bank & Trust Co. of Lexington v. United States
- James v. Louisiana
- Harris v. United StatesAltered precedent
- Tehan v. United States ex Rel. Shott
- Baxstrom v. HeroldLaw held unconstitutional
- United States v. Ewell
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