Final answer:
In Texas, the statute of limitations varies by case type, but Gideon's case was a retrial due to a constitutional violation, not restricted by the statute of limitations. Gideon's two trials were contrasted by his lack of representation in the first and court-appointed counsel in the second, leading to different outcomes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statute of limitations in Texas can vary depending on the type of legal claim. Generally, the statute of limitations for civil cases can range anywhere from 1 to 5 years, and for criminal cases, it can range from a few years to no limitation at all for certain crimes like murder.
However, the specific case you mentioned, Gideon's Trumpet, refers to the plight of Clarence Earl Gideon and the landmark Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) that guaranteed the right to counsel for all defendants in criminal cases.
Regarding why the statute of limitations did not apply in Gideon's case, the question relates to the fact that the Supreme Court decision allowed for Gideon to have a new trial, which was not barred by the statute of limitations since he was already convicted for the original crime, and the retrial was a result of a constitutional violation (lack of legal representation during the initial trial).