United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Miller v. Pate, 386 U.S. 1 (1967)

Miller v. Pate

No. 250

Argued January 11-12, 1967

Decided February 13, 1967

386 U.S. 1

Syllabus

Petitioner was tried and convicted for rape-murder. A crucial element of the circumstantial evidence against him was a pair of men's underwear shorts, allegedly petitioner's, bearing stains identified by prosecution testimony as blood of the victim's blood type. The judgment of conviction was upheld on appeal. In a subsequent habeas corpus proceeding, petitioner was first allowed to have the shorts subjected to chemical analysis, which revealed that the stains were not blood, but paint. It was further established that the prosecution knew of the paint stains at the time of trial. The District Court, for another reason, ordered petitioner's release or prompt retrial. The Court of Appeals reversed.

Held: The Fourteenth Amendment cannot tolerate a state criminal conviction secured by the knowing use of false evidence. Mooney v. Holohan, 294 U. S. 103, followed. Pp. 386 U. S. 2-7.

342 F.2d 646, reversed and remanded.

Page 386 U. S. 2