Williams v. Pennsylvania

Williams v. Pennsylvania
Argued February 29, 2016
Decided June 9, 2016
Full case nameTerrance Williams, Petitioner v. Pennsylvania
Docket no.15–5040
Citations579 U.S. ___ (more)
136 S. Ct. 1899; 195 L. Ed. 2d 132
Opinion announcementOpinion announcement
Case history
PriorCommonwealth v. Williams, 629 Pa. 533, 105 A.3d 1234 (2014); cert. granted, 136 S. Ct. 28 (2015).
Holding
Chief Justice Castille's denial of the recusal motion and his subsequent judicial participation violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Court membership
Chief Justice
John Roberts
Associate Justices
Anthony Kennedy · Clarence Thomas
Ruth Bader Ginsburg · Stephen Breyer
Samuel Alito · Sonia Sotomayor
Elena Kagan
Case opinions
MajorityKennedy, joined by Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, Kagan
DissentRoberts, joined by Alito
DissentThomas
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amends. VIII, XIV

Williams v. Pennsylvania, 579 U.S. ___ (2016), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that a prosecutor involved in seeking the death penalty for a defendant should recuse himself if asked to judge an appeal in the capital case.[1][2][not verified in body]

  1. ^ SCOTUSblog coverage
  2. ^ Williams v. Pennsylvania, No. 15-5040, 579 U.S. ___ (2016).