Gideon V Wainwright Case Summary

Supreme Court Cases: Rights of the Accused The Supreme Court dealt with different issues such as the Rights of the accused in cases such as the Gideon v. Wainwright in 1963, Miranda v. Arizona in 1966, and In Re Gault in 1967. In the Gideon v. Wainwright, which began when Gideon “was charged with breaking and entering with the intent to commit a misdemeanor, which is a felony under Florida law”(Facts and Case Summary-Gideon v. Wainwright). Once the trial began, Gideon asked the judge “to appoint counsel for him, since he could not afford an attorney”(Facts and Case Summary-Gideon v. Wainwright), the judge only permitted appointment of counsel for poor defendants charged with capital offenses and denied Gideon’s request he was sentenced to five years imprisonment. Gideon filed a petition in the Supreme Court of the United States, “the court agreed to hear the case to resolve the question of whether the right to counsel guaranteed the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution applies to defendants in state court”(Facts and Case Summary- Gideon v. Wainwright). A decision of the

Arizona, “Miranda was arrested at his home and taken in custody to a police station where he was identified by the complaining witness” (Facts and Case Summary-Miranda v. Arizona). He was found guilty of kidnapping and rape and was sentenced from 20 to30 years in prison, the Supreme Court of Arizona held that Miranda’s constitutional rights were not violated in obtaining the confession. The Court decided that “a defendant must be warned prior to any questioning that he has the right to remain silent, that anything he says can be used against him in a court of law, that he has the right to the presence of an attorney, and that if he cannot afford an attorney one will be appointed for him prior to any questioning if he so desires”(Facts and Case Summary-Miranda v. Arizona). This then began what is now known as “The Miranda Rights” which are told when someone is