Question

What was the court’s majority opinion in Gideon v. Wainwright?

Answer 1

The court unanimously ruled that the Florida state law providing legal counsel only for capital crimes was unconstitutional. This ruling also overturned a previous decision (Betts v. Brady, 1942), which had established the precedent that counsel would not be provided to poor defendants who were being tried at a state level.

The court opinion (written by Justice Black) states: “We think the Court in Betts was wrong, however, in concluding that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of counsel is not one of these fundamental rights.”

Explanation: FROM PLATO

Answer 2

Wainwright, case in which the U.S. Supreme Court on March 18, 1963, ruled (9–0) that states are required to provide legal counsel to indigent defendants charged with a felony.