Clarence Earl Gideon's successful Supreme Court case upset earlier rulings about the right of a criminal defendant to legal...

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GIDEON'S TRUMPET

Clarence Earl Gideon's successful Supreme Court case upset earlier rulings about the right of a criminal defendant to legal counsel. Mr. Lewis, with the skill of a journalist and the power of a storyteller, has traced this case from the arrival of Gideon's handwritten petition at the desk of the Clerk of the Court. His description of procedures, and his explication of the way new interpretations of law evolve, humanize the Supreme Court without lessening its majesty. The author follows the preparation of the brief by the attorneys who argued the decisions and discusses the implications of this case to those states where many prisoners will be able to appeal their sentences on similar grounds.

Pub Date: March 18, 1964

ISBN: 0679723129

Page Count: -

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1964

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