Criminal Rights Flashcards
Powell v. Alabama (1932)
Nine black children (Scottsboro Boys) were accused of sexually assaulting two white women in a freight train on their to way to Alabama. Alabama officials sprinted through the legal proceedings, all nine were sentenced to death. The Supre2me Court ruled that the trials denied due process, the defendant must be given access to counsel upon his or her own request as part of due process.
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
Gideon was arrested by police for breaking and entering with intent to commit petty larceny. However he was he was too poor to afford counsel and Florida state didn’t provide him with one. He was forced to act as his own counsel and conduct his own defense in court, emphasizing his innocence in the case, sentenced to five years in jail. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that 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.
Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
Mapp was convicted of possessing obscene materials after an admittedly illegal police search of her home for a fugitive. The Supreme Court ruled that decided that evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment, which protects against “unreasonable searches and seizures,” may not be used in state law criminal prosecutions in state courts.
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
Miranda was arrested for evidence linking him to the kidnapping and rape of a 18-year-old girl ten days earlier.. Two hours later, Miranda signed a confession to the rape charge. At no time was Miranda told of his right to counsel, right to remain silent, nor was he informed that his statements during the interrogation would be used against him. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Miranda, creating the Miranda rights that is apart of routine police procedure to ensure that suspects were informed of their rights.
Gregg v. Georgia (1976)
Jury found Gregg guilty of armed robbery and murder and sentenced him to death. Gregg challenged his remaining death sentence for murder, claiming that his capital sentence was a “cruel and unusual” punishment that violated the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Supreme Court ruled against Gregg, reaffirming the United States Supreme Court’s acceptance of the use of the death penalty in the United States,
