Grove Press, Inc. v. Maryland State Board of Censors
401 U.S. 480 · Decided March 8, 1971 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Grove Press, Inc. v. Maryland State Board of Censors was decided on March 8, 1971 by a vote of 4–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. The Justices were equally divided, which leaves the lower court's judgment in place without setting precedent. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Obscenity, state” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 401 U.S. 480 · 91 S. Ct. 966 · 28 L. Ed. 2d 205 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 71
- Docket number
- 63
- Decided
- March 8, 1971
- Argued
- November 10, 1970
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Equally divided vote
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 4–4
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Obscenity, state
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Equally divided vote | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Equally divided vote |
Did not participate: William O. Douglas.
Full case caption
Grove Press, Inc., et al. v. Maryland State Board of Censors
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-060, docket 1970-060-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Obscenity, state”
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