Ehlert v. United States
402 U.S. 99 · Decided April 21, 1971 · 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
Ehlert v. United States was decided on April 21, 1971 by a vote of 6–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Conscientious objectors” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 402 U.S. 99 · 91 S. Ct. 1319 · 28 L. Ed. 2d 625 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 51
- Docket number
- 120
- Decided
- April 21, 1971
- Argued
- January 13, 1971
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Conscientious objectors
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Selective Service statutes
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority |
Full case caption
Ehlert v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-089, docket 1970-089-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Conscientious objectors”
- McGee v. United States
- Gillette v. United States
- United States v. Weller
- Clay v. United States
- United States v. Sisson
- Parisi v. Davidson
Cases on the same legal provision: Selective Service statutes
- Astrup v. Immigration and Naturalization Service
- Toussie v. United States
- Kolden v. Selective Service Local Board No. 4
- Breen v. Selective Service Local Board No. 16
- Gutknecht v. United States
- McKart v. United States
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Blount v. RizziLaw held unconstitutional
- Baird v. State Bar of Arizona
- In re Stolar
- Law Students Civil Rights Research Council, Inc. v. Wadmond
- United States v. Weller
- Monitor Patriot Co. v. Roy
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