Gideon v. Wainwright
explanatory Essay
723 words
The Bay Harbor Pool Room (a pool hall/bar) in Pensacola Florida was broken into on June 3, 1961. The perpetrators broke a window unlocked a door entering the bar robbing the bar of $5 in change and a few bottles of beer and soda. Clarence Earl Gideon was arrested shortly thereafter at a tavern. A nearby resident, Henry Cook, claimed that he saw Gideon leave the bar with a bottle of wine and his pockets filled with coins, make a phone call, get in a cab and leave. Gideon denied the charges (Wikipedia, 2013).
Gideon was born in Hannibal Missouri on August 30, 1910. After completing the 8th grade, he ran away from home beginning a life as a drifter. By the age of sixteen he had compiled a profile of petty crime spent a year in a reformatory for burglary before he found work at a shoe factory. At the age of eighteen, Missouri police arrested Gideon for robbery, burglary, and larceny. The court sentenced him to ten years in prison but he only served three. For the next thirty years, he lived a life of poverty and crime. Gideon’s crime record included prison terms at Leavenworth Kansas for stealing government property, in Texas for theft, and again in Missouri for stealing, larceny, and escape. In between prison terms, he managed to get married four times; he had six children, managed to stay out of jail until his arrest in 1961. Given his crime record and proximity to the pool hall, Gideon was the perfect suspect for this crime (Wikipedia, 2013).
Original Trial
Gideon appearing before the Florida Court requested that the court appoint him an attorney. His trial judge Robert McCrary, Jr. denied this request. According to Florida State Law, the court could only appoint an attorney to an indigent defendant in capital cases....
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...eon did write that letter; the court did look into his case; he was retried with the help of competent counsel; found not guilty and released from prison after 2 years of punishment for a crime he did not commit. And the whole course of legal history has been changed. (Wikipedia, 2013, para. 16)
Conclusion
It has been 50 years since the Gideon v. Wainwright case. From a drifter, to a petty criminal, to the Supreme Court, Gideon opened doors for the poor man in the system. Because of this case, indigent defendants have access to legal counsel (public defenders), if they prove they cannot afford an attorney on their own.
Works Cited
Oyez. (2013, December 3). Gideon v. Wainwright. Retrieved from Oyez: http:www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1962/1962_155
Wikipedia. (2013). Clarence Earl Gideon. Retrieved from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Earl_Gideon
In this essay, the author
- Explains that gideon requested that the florida court appoint him an attorney, but his trial judge robert mccrary, jr. denied this request.
- Explains that gideon was awarded a new trial on august 5, 1963 with w. fred turner representing him as court appointed counsel. turner picked apart the eyewitness testimony suggesting that henry cook was likely looking out for other men who robbed the pool hall.
- Opines that if clarence earl gideon hadn't written a letter to the supreme court, the vast machinery of american law would have gone on functioning undisturbed.
- Explains that gideon v. wainwright opened doors for the poor man in the system. indigent defendants have access to legal counsel if they prove they cannot afford an attorney on their own.
- Describes how clarence earl gideon was arrested at a tavern in pensacola, florida, in 1961 for robbery, burglary and larceny. he was sentenced to ten years in prison but served three.
- Explains that gideon felt the court had violated his sixth amendment rights and began to study the legal system. he submitted a five-page hand written petition to the supreme court of the united states.
Related
- opinion
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- Gideon's Trumpetopinion essayOn the night of June 3, 1961, Clearance Gideon broke into a pool room and smashed a cigarette machine and a juke box, taking some money from both and cigarettes. Later that morning a witness reported seeing Gideon break into the pool hall. The police found him a few hours later with a pint of wine and some spare change, he was arrested and charged with breaking and entering.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that gideon's trumpet is the true story of a semiliterate drifter who is arrested for burglary and petty theft.
- Describes how clearance gideon broke into a pool room on june 3, 1961, smashed cigarette machines and juke boxes, took money from both, and was arrested and charged with breaking and entering.
- Explains that gideon couldn't afford a lawyer, so he asked the judge to nominate him one. the judge turned down his request, saying that the state did not have to pay for poor people's legal defense unless they were charged with capital crimes.
- Explains that gideon did a horrible job of defending himself in court. he was sentenced to five years in florida state prison mostly due to his prior past record.
- Describes how gideon's petition to the supreme court of the united states allowed him to file a writ of certiorari and he was retried.
- Recommends gideon's trumpet to anyone who wants to learn about the court systems and how one person can change the course of time and law.
- Opines that if an obscure florida convict named clarence earl gideon hadn't sat down in prison with pencil and paper to write a letter to the supreme court, the vast machinery of american law would have gone on undisturbed
- Opines that gideon's letter was retried, found not guilty, and released from prison after two years of punishment for a crime he did not commit.
661 wordsRead More - gideon v wainrightexplanatory essayGIDEON v. WAINWRIGHT_______________________________________________ 372 U.S. 335 (1975) FACTS: Gideon, the petitioner, was charged in a Florida State Court for breaking and entering into a poolroom with the intent to commit a misdemeanor. This is a felony under Florida State Law. Due to lack of funds, he asked the court to appoint counsel for him and was denied. The court stated that under Florida state law, counsel could only be appointed to represent a defendant when that person is charged with a capital offense. Gideon unsuccessfully represented himself at trial, which resulted in a verdict of guilty.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that gideon, the petitioner, was charged with breaking and entering into a poolroom with the intent to commit felony under florida state law.
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