United States v. Robinson
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued October 9, 1973 Decided December 11, 1973
Full case name	United States v. Willie Robinson, Jr.
Citations	414 U.S. 218 (more) 94 S. Ct. 467; 38 L. Ed. 2d 427
Case history
Prior	471 F.2d 1082 (D.C. Cir. 1973)
Holding
In the case of a lawful custodial arrest, a full search of the person is not only an exception to the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment, but is also a "reasonable" search under that Amendment.
Court membership
Chief Justice Warren E. Burger Associate Justices William O. Douglas · William J. Brennan Jr. Potter Stewart · Byron White Thurgood Marshall · Harry Blackmun Lewis F. Powell Jr. · William Rehnquist
Case opinions
Majority	Rehnquist, joined by Burger, Stewart, White, Blackmun, Powell
Concurrence	Powell
Dissent	Marshall, joined by Douglas, Brennan

United States v. Robinson, 414 U.S. 218 (1973), was a case in which the United States Supreme Court held that "in the case of a lawful custodial arrest a full search of the person is not only an exception to the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment, but is also a reasonable search under that Amendment."

Facts

A Washington D.C. Metropolitan police officer stopped a 1965 Cadillac based on reliable information that the driver's operating license had been revoked. All three occupants exited the car, and the officer arrested the driver, Robinson. (For purposes of the Court's opinion, it was assumed that Robinson's full-custody arrest was valid.) The officer proceeded to search Robinson, and felt a package whose contents the officer could not immediately identify. Upon removing the package—a crumpled cigarette packet—and opening it, the officer discovered "14 gelatin capsules of white powder" that turned out to be heroin.

Issue

Did the officer's search of the defendant violate the Fourth Amendment?

Holding

According to the Court "in the case of a lawful custodial arrest a full search of the person is not only an exception to the warrant requirement of the 4th Amendment, but is also a reasonable search under that Amendment."