The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday reinstated the 2017 murder conviction of Pedro Hernandez in the decades-old case involving the disappearance and presumed death of 6-year-old Etan Patz in New York City. In a 6-3 decision, the court sided with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, reversing a lower federal appellate court ruling that had overturned the conviction on procedural grounds.

Etan Patz vanished in 1979 while walking alone to a school bus stop in Manhattan’s Soho neighborhood. His disappearance became one of the first high-profile missing-child cases in the United States and helped usher in widespread efforts to raise awareness about missing children. Patz’s image was among the earliest to be displayed on milk cartons as part of public appeals to generate information.

Hernandez, who worked at a local delicatessen near the spot where Patz disappeared, was arrested in 2012 following a tip that he had confessed to the crime decades earlier during a church group meeting. He subsequently told police that he lured Patz to the deli’s basement, strangled him, and disposed of his body in a nearby alley. Hernandez was convicted of kidnapping and murder in 2017 and received a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

The defense has maintained that Hernandez suffers from mental illness and argued that his confession was coerced. They also pointed to Jose Ramos, a former prime suspect who had a connection to the Patz family through a babysitter and who died earlier this year. Ramos had been convicted of abusing young boys, adding complexity to the case.

Hernandez’s initial trial ended in a hung jury in 2015, but he was convicted at a subsequent trial two years later. However, in 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit overturned the conviction, citing an improper jury instruction by the trial judge related to how the jury should consider Hernandez’s videotaped confessions, some of which were made before he was advised of his Miranda rights. The appellate court found the instruction prejudicial and a factor in the guilty verdict.

The Supreme Court’s majority concluded the appellate court’s decision conflicted with a 1996 federal statute that limits federal courts’ ability to grant relief to state prisoners. The ruling affirms the trial judge’s instruction and reinstates Hernandez’s conviction.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg praised the ruling, emphasizing the office’s commitment to justice for Etan Patz and his family. The disappearance of Patz is commemorated annually on May 25, recognized as National Missing Children’s Day.