*Gideon+v.+Wainwright

=Gideon v. Wainwright=

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= = = = Argued: Tuesday, January 15, 1963 Decided: Monday, March 18, 1963 = = 1/1
 * __Year of Hearing by Supreme Court:__**

LABLE PICTURE!!! 1.5/2

Summary of the case
= = = = The defendant (COMMA) Clarence Earl Gideon (COMMA) was charged with breaking and entering into a poolroom on June 3rd 1961 with the intent to commit NO CAPS Larceny, based on the testimony of one witness. Under the then-current law of the state of Florida COMMA the crime was accusedly committed, qualified as a felony. PUT IN YOUR OWN WORDS When the court trial began COMMA Gideon was unable to provide a lawyer for himself due to financial restrictions, and HE asked the Court to appoint one for him. The court denied this request, as under Florida laws, a public defender can only be appointed to a defendant when they are charged with a capital offense or in special circumstances. PROOF READ FOR SPELLING/GRAMMAR MISTAKES

As Gideon could not procure a defense for himself and the Court would not appoint one for him, the semi-literate Gideon was forced to defend himself. Naturally despite the defendant’s best efforts, he was not prepared or able to defend himself as well as dedicated lawyer would in the case. Likely because of this, the jury returned a guilty verdict. This sentence put the defendant to five years in state prison, partially due to his past criminal record and little argument to sway them otherwise. While in prison Gideon began to study law from the prison library, and eventually wrote to the Supreme Court of Florida for //habeas corpus// as he believed his sixth amendment rights had been violated, which the court accepted in //forma pauperis//, waiving the fees that usually went along with such a case.

TRY NOT TO USE TOO MANY LEGAL TERMS - PUT IN PLAIN LANGUAGE, OR IF YOU USE LEGAL TERMS, EXPLAIN WHAT THEY MEAN 4.5/5

Constitutional/Legal Issue
The primary question the court had to answer was whether or not the 5th amendment’s guarantee of consul meant the court or state must provide defense for the case in any trial, and not just during special circumstances or when the defendant is charged with a federal offense as it was interpreted at that time.

The secondary question the court had to answer was whether or not the Bill of Rights applied to individual states, and whether or not it should override the state’s bill of rights. Gideon argued that as the 14th amendment guaranteed him his citizenship, and the Bill of Rights guaranteed him Consul, that the Bill of Rights should override State laws.

NICE JOB 5/5

**__Decision or Holding:__**
In a unanimous vote of nine to zero, the Supreme Court upheld that Gideon had the right to the aid of a court-appointed attorney since he lacked the funds to hire one for himself. The Court found that the guarantee of legal counsel granted by the Sixth Amendment was a fundamental right and was essential to producing a fair trial, which is stated in the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice Hugo L. Black, who wrote the majority opinion for the Court, stated that it was obvious that it was impossible to carry out a fair trial for a poor defendant without the assistance of the respective court; in this case, the Florida State Court. Justice Black also commented that “lawyers in criminal courts are necessities, not luxuries.” This decision by the Court overruled the verdict in the 1942 case, Betts v. Brady. ITALICS

5/5


 * __Significance:__**

Gideon was clearly at an unfair disadvantage during his trial before the Florida State Court. His lack of legal representation left him faced with the challenge of trying to effectively defend himself. The ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright has ensured that all defendants, no matter their economic standing, will have the right to representation by counsel. This has given all defendants a chance to defend themselves professionally and successfully, in some cases. The ruling has also established a standard of fairness in criminal trials across the United States.

5/5

**__Citations:__**
The Oyez Project. //Gideon v. Wainwright, 1963//. Retrieved from [] Kennedy, R.F. (1963). //Landmark supreme court cases: gideon v. wainwright (1963)//. Retrieved from [] Black, JB. (1963, March 18). //Opinion of the court regarding gideon v. wainwright//. Retrieved from http://www.tourolaw.edu/patch/Gideon/#o1 Landmark Cases, LMC. (n.d.). //What does the Sixth amendment mean?//. Retrieved from [] Landmark Cases, LMC. (n.d.). //Background summary and questions • • •//. Retrieved from http://www.landmarkcases.org/gideon/background3.html

2/2

24/25 = 96% (A)

NICE JOB. SEE COMMENTS ABOUT INTRO