Escobedo v. Illinois
378 U.S. 478 · Decided June 22, 1964 · 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
Escobedo v. Illinois was decided on June 22, 1964 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Arthur J. Goldberg wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area. SCDB codes this decision as formally altering one or more of the Court's own precedents.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 378 U.S. 478 · 84 S. Ct. 1758 · 12 L. Ed. 2d 977 · 1964 U.S. LEXIS 827
- Docket number
- 615
- Decided
- June 22, 1964
- Argued
- April 29, 1964
- 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
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Arthur J. Goldberg
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- 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
- Altered precedent
- Yes — formally altered the Court's precedent
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Arthur J. Goldberg | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Escobedo v. Illinois
SCDB identifiers: case 1963-164, docket 1963-164-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- McLeod v. Ohio.
- Massiah v. United States
- Crews v. Wainwright
- Banks v. Wainwright
- Newsome v. North Carolina
- Pickelsimer v. Wainwright
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Entsminger v. Iowa
- McConnell v. Rhay
- Arsenault v. Massachusetts
- Kirby v. Illinois
- United States v. Ash
- Moore v. Illinois
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Newsome v. North Carolina
- Pickelsimer v. Wainwright
- Barnes v. North Carolina
- Panico v. United States
- Evola v. United States
- Crews v. Wainwright
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