ROCHIN v. CALIFORNIA

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Case Basics
Docket No. 
83
Petitioner 
Rochin
Respondent 
California
Decided By 
Vinson Court (1949-1953)
Opinion 
342 U.S. 165 (1952)
Argued 
Tuesday, October 16, 1951
Decided 
Wednesday, January 2, 1952
Advocates
Dolly Lee Butler
(Argued the cause for the petitioner)
Howard S. Goldin
(Argued the cause for the respondent)
A. L. Wirin
(Argued the cause for the petitioner)
Term:
Location: Residence of Rochin
Facts of the Case 

Rochin swallowed drug capsules to dispose of evidence. The police pummeled him and jumped on his stomach in a vain effort to make him throw up. They took him to a hospital where a doctor was instructed by the police officers to administer an emetic by forceably passing a tube into Rochin's stomach. He vomited the capules and was convicted on the basis of the evidence produced from his vomit.

Question 

Did the police procedure forcing Rochin to vomit violate the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination and the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment?

Conclusion 

The Court reversed the conviction. The police violated Rochin's right to due process of law. Due process was an admittedly vague concept, but it prohibited "conduct that shocks the conscience." This nebulous approach was mocked in a concurring opinion by Justice Black.

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ROCHIN v. CALIFORNIA. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. 03 May 2013. <http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1951/1951_83>.
ROCHIN v. CALIFORNIA, The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1951/1951_83 (last visited May 3, 2013).
"ROCHIN v. CALIFORNIA," The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, accessed May 3, 2013, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1951/1951_83.