Home > Great American Court Cases > Patton v. United States

Legal Citation: 281 U.S. 276 (1930)

Appellants
John Patton, Harold Conant, Jack Butler

Appellee
United States

Appellants' Claim
That defendants in a federal criminal trial cannot waive their right to a trial by jury composed of fewer than 12 jurors.

Chief Lawyer for Appellants
Claude Nowlin

Chief Lawyer for Appellee
Charles E. Hughes, U.S. Solicitor General

Justices for the Court
Louis D. Brandeis, Pierce Butler, Oliver Wendell Holmes, James Clark McReynolds, Harlan Fiske Stone, Edward Terry Sanford, George Sutherland (writing for the Court), Willis Van Devanter

Justices Dissenting
None (William Howard Taft did not participate)

Place
Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision
14 April 1930

Decision
The Court affirmed a defendant's right to waive a trial by jury...