11 Sept 1961 Jahr - Gideon v. Wainwright - Right to an Attorney

Beschreibung:

The petitioner in that case, Clarence Earl Gideon, was charged with felony breaking and entering in Florida. He was too poor to afford a defense attorney, so he asked the judge to appoint an attorney on his behalf. At the time, Florida only offered court-appointed attorneys for indigent defendants in capital cases. The Supreme Court overturned that ruling, setting a precedent among all state courts.