Supreme Court of the United States
Boulden v. Holman
April 2, 1969394 U.S. 478
Summary
The Court upheld the lower courts’ determination that the confession introduced at trial was voluntary under the preexisting totality-of-the-circumstances standard. It nevertheless vacated the court of appeals’ judgment and remanded because the record strongly suggested that the death sentence may have resulted from exclusion of jurors on an impermissibly broad basis, although the Court left that issue for initial consideration below. Justice Harlan, concurring in part and dissenting in part, agreed with remand on jury selection but would also have required examination of an earlier alleged coercive interrogation and its effect on the later confession.
Holding
- Voluntariness of the confession. The confession was voluntarily made under the totality of the circumstances, and the lower courts were justified in denying habeas relief on that claim.
- Exclusion of prospective jurors in a capital case. The death sentence could not constitutionally stand without further consideration because the record strongly suggested that numerous jurors were excluded merely for general opposition to capital punishment or disbelief in it, rather than because they unequivocally would automatically vote against death in every case. The Court did not finally resolve the issue and remanded it for proper consideration.
Docket 644
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