Foster v. California
394 U.S. 440 · Decided April 1, 1969 · 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
Foster v. California was decided on April 1, 1969 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Abe Fortas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Line-up identification” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 394 U.S. 440 · 89 S. Ct. 1127 · 22 L. Ed. 2d 402 · 1969 U.S. LEXIS 2050
- Docket number
- 47
- Decided
- April 1, 1969
- Argued
- November 19, 1968
- 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
- Abe Fortas
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Line-up identification
- 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 | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority |
Full case caption
Foster v. California
SCDB identifiers: case 1968-071, docket 1968-071-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Line-up identification”
- Biggers v. Tennessee
- United States v. Wade
- Gilbert v. California
- Stovall v. Denno
- Kirby v. Illinois
- United States v. Ash
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
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- Gregory v. City of Chicago
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- Johnson v. Florida
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- McConnell v. Rhay
- Arsenault v. Massachusetts
- International Terminal Operating Co., Inc. v. Nv Nederl. Amerik Stoomv Maats
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- Smith v. Yeager
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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