No. 00-1519October Term 2000Decided Jun 29, 2001
United States v. Arvizu
A Border Patrol agent stopped Ralph Arvizu's vehicle based on several seemingly innocent factors that, when taken together, raised suspicion of illegal activity.
Case status
- Current stage
- Decided
- Latest event
- Decision released Jun 29, 2001
- What it's about
A Border Patrol agent stopped Ralph Arvizu's vehicle based on several seemingly innocent factors that, when taken together, raised suspicion of illegal activity. The Supreme Court ruled that courts must consider the totality of the circumstances when determining if an officer had reasonable suspicion for a stop under the Fourth Amendment.
Question presented
Did a border agent have reasonable suspicion to believe that Ralph Arvizu was engaged in illegal activity based on a number of factors?
- Case path
Decision released Jun 29, 2001
- Area
Decided Supreme Court case
Timing
Decided June 29, 2001
The Court released its decision on June 29, 2001 without hearing oral argument.
Documents
Opinions
Rehnquist, Scalia
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary-source trail available.
- Note
- Plain-English explainer. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Jul 25, 2026
- Method
- Methodology