Sumner v. Shuman

483 U.S. 66 · Decided June 22, 1987 · Supreme Court of the United States

At a glance

Sumner v. Shuman was decided on June 22, 1987 by a vote of 6–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Harry A. Blackmun wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty” in the Criminal Procedure area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.

Read the opinion

• CourtListener (Free Law Project) — opinion text
• Library of Congress — official U.S. Reports scan

Case details

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Sumner, Director, Nevada Department of Prisons, et al. v. Shuman

SCDB identifiers: case 1986-139, docket 1986-139-01.

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Other cases on “Cruel and unusual punishment, death penalty”

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Cases on the same legal provision: Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)

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Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)

• Colorado v. Connelly
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• Connecticut v. Barrett
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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