Robert Wayne Sawyer v. John Whitley
505 U.S. 333 · Decided June 22, 1992 · 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
Robert Wayne Sawyer v. John Whitley was decided on June 22, 1992 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Habeas corpus” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 505 U.S. 333 · 112 S. Ct. 2514 · 120 L. Ed. 2d 269 · 1992 U.S. LEXIS 3864
- Docket number
- 91-6382
- Decided
- June 22, 1992
- Argued
- February 25, 1992
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Habeas corpus
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority |
Full case caption
Robert Wayne Sawyer v. John Whitley, Warden
SCDB identifiers: case 1991-104, docket 1991-104-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Habeas corpus”
- Ellis B. Wright, Jr. v. Frank Robert West, Jr.
- J. C. Keeney v. Jose Tamayo-ReyesAltered precedent
- James R. Stringer v. Lee Roy Black
- Wilburn Dobbs v. Walter D. Zant
- Leonel Torres Herrera v. James A. Collins
- Gary Graham v. James A. Collins
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- United States v. Alejandro Garcia Ibarra
- Wayne Estelle v. Mark Owen McGuire
- Guy Wooddell, Jr. v. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
- In re James Blodgett
- Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Joseph Patrick Doherty
- Randall D. White v. Illinois
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