Gideon Indigence Case Essay

To be denied of help when you're indigent is like taking a man’s soul away. Clarence Earl Gideon was far from a hero to the courts. In 1963 Gideon was charged with breaking and entering. It's puzzling to me that one was unable to help himself even if there was a crime being committed and the court system just brushed him off by denying him a court appointed attorney. What would be a misdemeanor in the state of Mississippi is considered a Felony in the state of Florida. Gideon had the intentions to commit a misdemeanor crime by breaking into and entering a poolroom. According to Florida state law, however, an attorney may only be appointed to an indigent defendant in capital cases, so the trial court did not appoint one (oyez.com). Gideon

Gideon went through all of the procedures that an attorney would in the process of his trial. He made an opening statement, questioned witnesses, and appealed to the jury. However, in spite of Gideon’s representation of self, the jury reached a guilty verdict. Because he had been in prison before and had a previous record his sentence was more severe than the usual sentence for burglary. While in prison Gideon who was somewhat illiterate took advantage of the Law Library by writing his own writ of certiorari. He began studying the law to learn about his constitutional rights during his court trial. Gideon discovered that his rights had been violated under the sixth amendment denying him an attorney. Upon his research, he found out he could file an appeal to get his sentence overturned if he took the necessary steps and turned to the Supreme

His conviction was overturned making Gideon’s case the first in history to be overturned on a ruling challenging the sixth and fourteenth amendments, therefore, setting a precedent for future cases. Although Gideon overcame what some would say a landmark case his battle was not over yet. He was retried for the crime even though it had been over two years, which is past the statue of limitation. He was also retried for the same crime twice which should have fallen under the double jeopardy law under the Fifth Amendment. Fortunately, Gideon had good representation from his counsel who in fact won Gideon’s freedom on the 2nd