Lee v. Florida
392 U.S. 378 · Decided June 17, 1968 · 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
Lee v. Florida was decided on June 17, 1968 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” 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
- 392 U.S. 378 · 88 S. Ct. 2096 · 20 L. Ed. 2d 1166 · 1968 U.S. LEXIS 3098
- Docket number
- 174
- Decided
- June 17, 1968
- Argued
- May 2, 1968
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Communications Act of 1934
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- 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 | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority |
Full case caption
Lee et al. v. Florida
SCDB identifiers: case 1967-179, docket 1967-179-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- Mancusi v. Deforte
- Wainwright v. City of New Orleans
- Miller v. California
- Terry v. Ohio
- Sibron v. New York
- Sabbath v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Communications Act of 1934
- United States v. Southwestern Cable Co.
- Fuller v. Alaska
- Federal Communications Commission v. Schreiber
- Farmers Educational & Cooperative Union of America v. Wday, Inc.
- United States v. Radio Corporation of America
- Federal Communications Commission v. National Citizens Committee for Broadcasting
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Bitter v. United States
- Roberts v. United States
- Wood v. United States
- Pinto v. Pierce
- Beecher v. Alabama
- Garner v. Yeager
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