Florida v. Wells
495 U.S. 1 · Decided April 18, 1990 · 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
Florida v. Wells was decided on April 18, 1990 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure, vehicles” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 495 U.S. 1 · 110 S. Ct. 1632 · 109 L. Ed. 2d 1 · 1990 U.S. LEXIS 2035
- Docket number
- 88-1835
- Decided
- April 18, 1990
- Argued
- December 4, 1989
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure, vehicles
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourth Amendment
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority |
Full case caption
Florida v. Wells
SCDB identifiers: case 1989-063, docket 1989-063-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure, vehicles”
- Alabama v. Vanessa Rose White
- Michigan Department of State Police v. Rick Sitz
- Brower v. County of Inyo
- Florida v. Luz Piedad Jimeno
- California v. Charles Steven AcevedoAltered precedent
- Florida v. Bostick
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- Minnesota v. Olson
- Smith v. Ohio
- Terry Brice Horton v. California
- United States v. Rene Martin Verdugo-Urquidez
- Maryland v. Jerome Edward Buie
- Illinois v. Rodriguez
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Michael Terrell v. Terry L. Morris
- James v. Illinois
- Dowling v. United States
- Holland v. Illinois
- Baltimore City Department of Social Services v. Bouknight
- United States v. Rene Martin Verdugo-Urquidez
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