Demarcus Ali Sears v. Stephen Upton
561 U.S. 945 · Decided June 29, 2010 · 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
Demarcus Ali Sears v. Stephen Upton was decided on June 29, 2010 by a vote of 5–4. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. The decision was issued per curiam (an unsigned opinion of the Court). SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 561 U.S. 945 · 130 S. Ct. 3259 · 177 L. Ed. 2d 1025 · 2010 U.S. LEXIS 5540
- Docket number
- 09-8854
- Decided
- June 29, 2010
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (no oral argument)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Opinion assigned by
- John Paul Stevens
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Right to counsel
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Dissent | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority |
Full case caption
Demarcus Ali Sears v. Stephen Upton, Warden
SCDB identifiers: case 2009-092, docket 2009-092-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- Jose Padilla v. Kentucky
- Jesse Jay Montejo v. LouisianaAltered precedent
- Indiana v. Edwards
- Randall Wright v. Joseph L. Van Patten
- Kaley v. United States
- United States v. Cuauhtemoc Gonzalez-Lopez
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Robert Wong v. Fernando Belmontes, Jr.
- Blaine Lafler v. Anthony Cooper
- Missouri v. Galin E. Frye
- Rothgery v. Gillespie County
- Deborah K. Johnson v. Tara Sheneva Williams
- Roselva Chaidez v. United States
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- George Porter, Jr. v. Bill McCollum
- Michigan v. Jeremy Fisher
- Jeffrey A. Beard v. Joseph J. Kindler
- E. K. McDaniel v. Troy Brown
- Keith Smith v. Frank G. Spisak, Jr.
- Marcus A. Wellons v. Hilton Hall
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