Betts V. Gideon Case Analysis

I. Introduction
In 1963 Clarence Earl Gideon presented himself in front of the Supreme Court. Gideon had been indicted for breaking and entering; after defending himself in his preliminary trial he was sentenced to five years in prison. During his time in jail, Gideon did some research on law and wrote an appeal to the Supreme Court. Gideon’s request of representation was on behalf of the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The court decided to put the case on trial; it related back to the Betts v. Brady case of 1942. Unlike Betts v. Brady’s 6-3 ruling in which Betts had lost, Gideon won the case with an astounding 9-0 majority. The main issue of the case centers on proper representation of the defendant. In order for the reader to fully understand the scope of the case, he or she needs to consider Betts v. Brady.
1Gideon’s case originally started in the lower courts. 2He went to the 13th Florida State Circuit courts. 3Primarily, he was drawn to court for robbing a bar in Panama City, Florida. 4A witness claimed to see him break "into the Bay Harbor Pool Room in Panama
Wainwright trial. 2They left and impact felt by everyone who steps into the courtroom today. 3Gideon and Betts push to change the precedent paid off. 4In 1972 the precedent was changed to "require counsel for any defendant who would spend even one day in jail if found guilty" ("Gideon v. Wainwright"). 5As the same law was tried many times, it changed each time it was brought into court. 6During its second run through the court, changing the law was denied, and Betts lost his case. 7According to Roberts, the Fourteenth Amendment "does not compel states to provide counsel to any defendant" ("Betts v. Brady"). 8This case resulted in the decline of Betts, an exceptionally diverse in comparison to Gideon v. Wainwright. 9Even though justices doubted Betts claim, Gideon made them believe in it; resulting in a case that made American