Gideon's Trumpet

9 Pages 2248 Words

In Gideon’s Trumpet, Anthony Lewis provides a detailed account of Clarence Earl Gideon’s appeal to Supreme Court in order to gain his right to counsel, but Lewis also gives an excellent description of the process of appealing to the Supreme Court in general.
Chapter 1
Chapter 1 describes Gideon’s claim to the Supreme Court (hereafter simply the Court). Gideon petitioned the Court in forma pauperis, in the manner of a pauper. Lewis states that the Court’s “Rule 53 allows an impoverished person to file just one copy of a petition….‘due allowance’ for technical errors so long as there is substantial compliance” (4).
From his initial filing to the Court, it appears as though Gideon made a substantial effort to comply with the standards set by the Court in regard to in forma pauperis petitions. Gideon’s application was written in pencil, but he included the affidavit required to proceed in forma pauperis. In his petition, Gideon also provided the Court with a copy of his habeas corpus petition that he filed to the Florida Supreme Court and the Florida Supreme Court’s rejection of that petition.
In his petition, Lewis states that Gideon provided little, if any, personal information. Lewis describes Gideon as a destitute man who bore the marks of a destitute life. Gideon was 51 years old at the time of his petition to the Court. He had been convicted on four previous felonies. According to Lewis, hardly anyone would describe Gideon as a violent man; rather, Gideon was a man who found great difficulty in settling down and working to live. Thus, Gideon often turned to crime.
In his filing to the Court, Gideon’s case was originally titled Gideon v. Cochran. Gideon’s primary submission to the Court was a 5-page petition for writ of certiorari. Gideon had been convicted of breaking and entering into the Bay Harbor Poolroom in Panama City, Florida. The crux of Gideon’s petition to the Court was that the due pr...