Killian v. United States
368 U.S. 231 · Decided December 11, 1961 · 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
Killian v. United States was decided on December 11, 1961 by a vote of 5–4. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Charles E. Whittaker wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Internal security legislation” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 368 U.S. 231 · 82 S. Ct. 302 · 7 L. Ed. 2d 256 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 1931
- Docket number
- 7
- Decided
- December 11, 1961
- Argued
- October 10, 1961
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Charles E. Whittaker
- Opinion assigned by
- Felix Frankfurter
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Internal security legislation
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- 18 U.S.C. § 1001
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Dissent | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Full case caption
Killian v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1961-012, docket 1961-012-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Internal security legislation”
- Communist Party, U. S. A. v. Catherwood
- Communist Party of the United States v. Subversive Activities Control Board
- Scales v. United States
- Noto v. United States
- Travis v. United States
- Rabinowitz v. Kennedy
Cases on the same legal provision: 18 U.S.C. § 1001
- United States v. Bramblett
- United States v. Beacon Brass Co., Inc.
- United States v. Rodgers
- United States v. Yermian
- John Bruce Hubbard v. United StatesAltered precedent
- James Brogan v. United States
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Cramp v. Board of Public Instruction of Orange CountyLaw held unconstitutional
- Nostrand v. Little
- Russell v. United States
- Grumman v. United States
- Wood v. Georgia
- Engel v. Vitale
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