Page 71 - Panama City Living July-August 2019

The Court Case That Changed Criminal AJustice in the U.S.
Gideon v. Wainwright
At the core of the American judicial system, there is the pledge to uphold human rights, endeavoring to grant fair treatment and trial to those under suspicion of having committed a crime. Throughout history, those who have been accused of a crime who were not able to afford legal representation have been at a disadvantage in receiving a fair trial.
This was the circumstance of Clarence Earl Gideon, a man of little education and financial means who lived in Panama City, Florida, in the 1960s. Accused of burglarizing a pool hall, he was unable to afford an attorney and attempted to represent himself in court. When he argued that he was entitled to have legal counsel, the Florida Supreme Court denied his request and he was sentenced to five years in prison. From there, Gideon petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court in Gideon v. Wainwright, arguing that he had not received a fair trial. In 1963, the Supreme Court agreed with Gideon and ruled that indigents were entitled to court-appointed representation. This forever changed legal procedures, impacting federal and state criminal justice systems across America, and set the foundation for the first public defenders’ office that has evolved to include thousands of public defenders in office across the United States. The rest is historical jurisprudence.
With the Gideon case setting precedence and foundation, in criminal matters, a court is required to appoint a lawyer to represent an individual who is unable to afford an attorney. There is now a rising issue as to whether people should have access to court-appointed attorneys in civil matters, much like in criminal matters, and, if so, to what extent.
Locally, there are several alternatives for securing legal representation in civil matters for those who cannot otherwise afford them. These include the Legal Services of North Florida, and the Bay County Bar Association’s First Saturday Legal Clinic located at 211 E. 11th Street, Panama City, FL, Tel: (850) 769-3581.
"Gideon's Trumpet," by Anthony Lewis, follows the events of the court case Gideon v. Wainwright, in which the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that criminal defendants have the right to an attorney.
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