Moreover, while due process may not be violated by allowing states to establish different guidelines for their criminal trials and procedures than those established in the federal system, the Court seems to recognize that if something has been established as a necessary minimum to guarantee due process in the federal system, it will also be the minimum in the states. One thing about this case, and about most states' existing criminal systems, is that it differentiates between misdemeanors and felonies, by providing that those charged with felonies are entitled to an appointed attorney. However, the distinction between misdemeanors and felonies seems untenable; people charged with misdemeanors face the threat of the loss of liberty and property. If due process cannot be protected without an attorney, and the Court feels that this threat is the same regardless of the degree...
This entitlement is not based on the possible punishment that the defendant bases, but on the threat that the defendant will face the deprivation of life or liberty. The Court has recognized that Due Process of law is not something that can be accomplished by most laypersons, because of the intricate nature of law, and the fact that the adversarial American court system means that the prosecution will be represented by an attorney. Therefore, in order to protect a defendant's right to Due Process, all defendants facing felony charges are entitled to court-appointed attorneys, if they are unable to afford an attorney.
Even if the decision might not be popular, wrote the court, "from the very beginning, our state and national constitutions and laws have laid great emphasis on procedural and substantive safeguards designed to assure fair trials before impartial tribunals in which every defendant stands equal before the law," and because these procedures are often very complicated to understand, "this noble ideal cannot be realized if the poor man charged
Miranda v. Arizona. 384 U.S. 436 (1966) This case was first brought in district court against Ernest Miranda after a rape investigation led authorities to question him. Under questioning, Miranda admitted to raping a young girl and signed a written confession. The case was heard in Phoenix district court and Miranda was adjudicated as guilty. The Arizona Supreme Court rejected Miranda's appeal, finding him guilty once again. The U.S. Supreme Court
Wainwright v Gideon In 1961, a man named Clarence Earl Gideon was arrested for stealing coins and alcohol from a Panama City, Florida, pool hall. He was a poor man and could not afford a lawyer. Following his conviction, he served five years in prison. During that time, he sent a handwritten letter to the Supreme Court in which he explained that he had been forced to fend for himself in
offices in the judicial system, e.g. prosecutor, private attorney, public defender, and comparatively discuss the origin, development, behavior and relatedness of each to the other person would be considered till such a time, innocent of a crime, in the U.S. judicial system when he or she would be proved found guilty in a court of law by a jury of peers or common citizens. On the functioning of the
Finally, a lot of defense lawyers assist in helping men and women go free because of a technicality. On the whole however, it is a better system after the Gideon case because less innocent people are being convicted of crimes they did not commit. In the Case of Miranda v. Arizona 384 U.S. 436 (1966), the Court ruled that a defendant's admission was only admissible provided he had been properly
Death Penalty in Michigan There are, at present, 38 states with the death penalty and 12 without (deathpenaltyinfo.org 2004). Michigan is one of the 12. From 1976, there have been 906 executions in the U.S.: 517 were white, 310 blacks; 57 hispanic; and 22, other races. More than 80% of these cases involved white victims, although only 50% of murder victims were white. Case studies on race showed that 96% had
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