The Case Of Gideon Vs. Wainwright

On June 3, 1961, a man was accused of entering and breaking into a pool hall in Panama City, Florida. An owner of a pool hall saw that his window had been broken, some of his bottles were stolen, and that there was money missing from the machines. Clarence Earl Gideon, a poor man, was who was blamed for committing this crime. Gideon vs. Wainwright is the Supreme Court case. Gideon became arrested and became to find that his fifth, fourteenth, and sixth amendment rights were violated.
Again stated, when Gideon became arrested, he was denied his equal right stated in the fifth amendment. Gideon was brought to trial. When he asked for representation, he was deprived of the right to representation at his trial in the state of Florida. The court did not allow him to get an attorney because it was said that you were only allowed for representation if it was a capital case or if you had a mental defect, and because he didn’t have these qualities he was denied for representation. The fifth amendment is part of the “Bill of Rights,” which states each citizen equal rights. This bill says the guarantee of a citizen’s due process to anyone for any crime and that the state must respect their legal rights. The state did not recognize Gideon’s legal right to representation. When Gideon was arrested, he was denied his right to the fifth amendment.

The state of Florida should not have denied him the right to representation. Because Gideon now had no representation, he was left on his own. During a trial, he had to defend himself and did not do a good job of doing so. Gideon had no form of knowledge about the law, so he did not know exactly how to defend himself. He was found guilty and was now given five years in prison. The fourteenth amendment, states that no state can deny citizens due process and for equal protection. Gideon was also denied his right stated in the fourteenth