United States v. Mendenhall

446 U.S. 544 (1980)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
U
From our private database of 46,200+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

United States v. Mendenhall

United States Supreme Court
446 U.S. 544 (1980)

Play video

Facts

Upon exiting her plane, Mendenhall (defendant) was approached in the airport by two plain clothes Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents who asked to see her plane ticket and identification. The agents testified that they decided to question Mendenhall because she was behaving in a way typical of people illegally transporting drugs. Mendenhall showed the police her identification and ticket which they then gave back to her. After identifying themselves as DEA agents, the agents then asked if she would come with them to their office and she complied. The agents did not brandish their weapons but at trial, one of the agents testified that at this point if she had wanted to leave, Mendenhall would have been restrained. Once at the office, the agents asked if she would consent to a search of her bag and her person. She agreed. As she was undressing, two packages of heroin that Mendenhall was hiding on her person were discovered. The district court held that the consent to search was freely and voluntarily given while the court of appeals held that consent to the search was not voluntary and the result of prior government misconduct.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Stewart, J.)

Concurrence (Powell, J.)

Dissent (White. J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 790,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 790,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,200 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 790,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,200 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Criminal Procedure

Key Terms