Gideon's Promise and Peril: Meeting the Mandate for Indigent Defense
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision Gideon v. Wainwright, in which the Court ruled state courts were obligated to provide counsel in criminal cases for defendants who could not otherwise afford it. The logic of this unanimous decision has had far-reaching implications for the way we think about justice in the United States and held such promise to those of us dedicated to the fairness of our judicial system. On October 11th, we will gather to consider how perilous the path remains to meeting this promise.