Essay About Immunities Of Citizens Of The United States And Case Of Gideon V

Right To Legal Counsel
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The framers formed this country with one sole document, the
Constitution, which they wrote with great wisdom and foresight. This
bountiful wisdom arose from the unjust treatment of King George to
which the colonists were subject. Among these violations of the
colonists rights were inequitable trials that made a mockery of
justice. As a result, a fair trial of the accused was a right given to
the citizens along with other equities that the framers instilled in
every other facet of this countrys government. These assurances of
the citizens rights stated in the bill of rights.
In the Sixth Amendment, it is stated that, “In all criminal
prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the rightto have the
Assistance of Counsel for his defence.” A first reading of this phrase
one might be think that this right, that which gives a person accused
of a crime to have lawyers for his defense, is common knowledge being
that it is among the most basic rights given to the citizenry of the
public. However, the simple manner in which this amendment is phrased
creates a “gray area”, and subject to interpretation under different
circumstances. The legitimacy of the right to mount a legal defense is
further obscured by the Fourteenth Amendment which states, “No State
shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or
immunities of citizens of the United States.” As a result, many
questions begin to arise which seek to determine the true right of the
accused to the assistance of counsel. Should legal counsel be provided
by the government if the accused lacks the funds to assemble a counsel
for his defense? Or, on the other hand, does this amendment set the
responsibility of assembling a defensive counsel on the accused even
if he or she lacks the funds to do so?
Also, do the states have the right to make their own
legislation regarding the right of the indigent accused to have
counsel appointed to them in the state trials, or does the Fourteenth
Amendment prevent this? The Supreme Court was faced with answering
these questions in the case of Gideon v. Wainwright.
In June of 1961, Clarence Earl Gideon, a fifty year old petty
thief, drifter, and gambler who had spent much of his life in and out
of jail was arrested in Panama City Florida. He was charged with
breaking into a poolroom one night in an effort to steal beer, Coke,
and coins from a cigarette machine (Goodman 62).
From the outset, Gideon insisted that he was innocent. His
trial commenced in a Florida courtroom in August of that year. Gideon
informed the Judge that he was not prepared for the trial to begin
because he had not assembled a legal counsel in his defense. He then
requested that the court appoint counsel to represent him (Goodman
62). The Judge responded with the following statement:
“Mr. Gideon, I am sorry, but I cannot appoint Counsel to represent you
in this case. Under the laws of the State of Florida, the only time
the Court can appoint Counsel to represent a defendant is when that
person is charged with a capital offense. I am sorry, but I will have
to deny your request to appoint Counsel to defend you in this case”
(372 U.S. 335)
The trial continued, and Gideon directed his defense; but his efforts
were futile as one could expect from a common man with no legal
education or experience. The jury convicted him of the felonious
charges and gave Gideon the maximum five year sentence (Goodman 62).
At the time of Gideons trial in the Florida court the right to legal
counsel ensured by the Sixth Amendment was only applicable to federal
cases, and states had the right to handle the matter of the
appointment of legal counsel to the defense in state cases at their
discretion (Asch, 135). This practice was an effect of the outcome of
the United States Supreme Court case of Betts v. Brady decided in
1942. In this case, an unemployed farm worker in Maryland named Smith
Betts was charged with robbery requested that the court appoint
counsel to his defense. The judge denied this request on the grounds
that in that county it was not practice in that county for the court
to appoint counsel to poor defendants only in capital cases. Like
Gideon, Betts conducted his own defense and was convicted and
sentenced to eight years in prison. Betts sent an appeal to the
Supreme Court, but the Court