Ralston v. Robinson
454 U.S. 201 · Decided December 2, 1981 · 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
Ralston v. Robinson was decided on December 2, 1981 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Juveniles” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 454 U.S. 201 · 102 S. Ct. 233 · 70 L. Ed. 2d 345 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 147
- Docket number
- 80-2049
- Decided
- December 2, 1981
- Argued
- October 5, 1981
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Juveniles
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- 18 U.S.C. § 5005
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent |
Full case caption
Ralston, Warden v. Robinson
SCDB identifiers: case 1981-012, docket 1981-012-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Juveniles”
- Santosky v. KramerLaw held unconstitutional
- Tuten v. United States
- Parham v. J.R.
- Secretary of Public Welfare of Pennsylvania v. Institutionalized Juveniles
- Schall v. Martin
- Swisher v. Brady
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Chardon v. Fernandez
- Polk County v. Dodson
- Blanding v. Dubose
- Cabell v. Chavez-Salido
- Merrion v. Jicarilla Apache Tribe
- Herweg et Vir v. Ray
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