Smith v. Ohio/Dissent Marshall

Justice MARSHALL, dissenting.

Although I agree that the limited information before us appears to indicate that the Ohio Supreme Court erred in its decision below, I continue to believe that summary dispositions deprive litigants of a fair opportunity to be heard on the merits and significantly increase the risk of an erroneous decision. See Pennsylvania v. Bruder, 488 U.S. 9, 11-12, 109 S.Ct. 205, 207, 102 L.Ed.2d 172 (1988) (MARSHALL, J., dissenting); Rhodes v. Stewart, 488 U.S. 1, 4-5, 109 S.Ct. 202, 204, 102 L.Ed.2d 1 (1988) (MARSHALL, J., dissenting); Buchanan v. Stanships, Inc., 485 U.S. 265, 269-270, 108 S.Ct. 1130, 1132, 99 L.Ed.2d 289 (1988) (MARSHALL, J., dissenting); Commissioner v. McCoy, 484 U.S. 3, 7-8, 108 S.Ct. 217, 219-20, 98 L.Ed.2d 2 (1987) (MARSHALL, J., dissenting). I therefore dissent from the Court's decision today to reverse summarily the judgment below.