Wyoming v. Houghton
| Wyoming v. Houghton | |
|---|---|
| Argued January 12, 1999 Decided April 5, 1999 | |
| Full case name | Wyoming, Petitioner v. Sandra K. Houghton |
| Citations | 526 U.S. 295 (more) 119 S.Ct. 1297; 143 L. Ed. 2d 408; 1999 U.S. LEXIS 2347; 67 U.S.L.W. 4225; 99 Cal. Daily Op. Service 2476; 99 Daily Journal DAR 3230; 1999 Colo. J. C.A.R. 1924; 12 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 179 |
| Case history | |
| Prior | 956 P.2d 363 (Wyo. 1998); cert. granted, 524 U.S. 983 (1998). |
| Holding | |
| Absent exigency, the warrantless search of a passenger's container capable of holding the object of a search for which there is probable cause is not a violation of the Fourth Amendment, justified under the automobile exception as an effect of the car. | |
| Court membership | |
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| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Scalia, joined by Rehnquist, O'Connor, Kennedy, Thomas, Breyer |
| Concurrence | Breyer |
| Dissent | Stevens, joined by Souter, Ginsburg |
| Laws applied | |
| U.S. Const. amend. IV | |
Wyoming v. Houghton, 526 U.S. 295 (1999), is a United States Supreme Court case which held that absent exigency, the warrantless search of a passenger's container capable of holding the object of a search for which there is probable cause is not a violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution because it is justified under the automobile exception as an effect of the car.