Supreme Court Cases Criminal Rights 1960’s

Gideon vs. Wainwright 1963 state courts are required under the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to provide counsel in criminal cases to represent defendants who are unable to afford to pay their own attorneys. Clarence Earl Gideon convicted of unarmed burglary in FL (Wainwright = State Prosecutor)

Reynolds vs. Sims 1964 Sims was a voter who sued Alabama requires that the legislative districts across states be equal in population; redistricting Chief Justice Earl Warren: –the United States is a democracy based on equal representation of the people in government, an apportionment scheme that gives more weight to some votes than others violates the Equal Protection Clause, which forbids a state from denying "to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Because the right to vote is so fundamental to securing protection from the laws, the clause inevitably guarantees "the opportunity for equal participation by all voters in the election of state legislatures."

NY Times Co. vs. Sullivan 1964 requires that the plaintiff in a defamation or libel case prove that the publisher of the statement in question knew that the statement was false or acted in reckless disregard of its truth or falsity NY Times reported Civil Rights information incorrectly; defamed Alabama (Montgomery Public Safety Commissioner, L.B. Sullivan)

Miranda vs. Arizona 1966 statements made in response to interrogation by a defendant in police custody will be admissible at trial only if the prosecution can show that the defendant was informed of the right to consult with an attorney before and during questioning and of the right against self- incrimination prior to questioning by police, and that the defendant not only understood these rights, but voluntarily waived them. Miranda Rights must be read to you during arrest Ernesto Miranda was convicted of kidnapping, rape, & armed robbery