GIDEON V WAINWRIGHT Supreme Court Decision and Reasoning

GIDEON V WAINWRIGHT Supreme Court Decision and Reasoning

Precedent Cases ■ Powell v. Alabama (1932) – 9 African-American men arrested for rape – could not hire a lawyer. Found guilty, appealed numerous time. – States must provide legal counsel in death penalty cases ■ Betts v. Brady (1942) – Betts arrested for robbery and could not afford a lawyer – found guilty – Court ruled that in extraordinary circumstances the state must provide counsel, but not in every situation. – E. g. , illiteracy, mental deficiency, etc. ■ Gideon v. Wainwright: Should Betts be reconsidered?

Betts v Brady, 1942 ■ Read the majority and minority opinions ■ Record the arguments Made by Owens (Majority) and Black (Minority)

Gideon v Wainwright 1961

Gideon v Wainwright ■ You are now the Supreme Court having to decide this question: – Should the 14 th amendment provision of “due process” apply to all state laws? – Should Betts v Brady be overturned and should every defendant be provided a lawyer if they can’t afford one? ■ Record the arguments for Gideon and for the State of Florida on your sheet of paper. ■ Make your decision on the two questions and support it with legal reasoning and factual evidence.

Supreme Court Decision ■ Hugo Black (Justice who wrote dissenting opinion on Betts v Brady wrote the 90 decision stating two things: – Every defendant should be granted a lawyer if they can’t afford one – The 14 th amendment incorporates the Bill of Rights into it and applies to state laws.