---
product_id: 1274052
title: "Gideon's Trumpet: How One Man, a Poor Prisoner, Took His Case to the Supreme Court-and Changed theLaw of the United States"
price: "1032193₫"
currency: VND
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 8
url: https://www.desertcart.vn/products/1274052-gideons-trumpet-how-one-man-a-poor-prisoner-took-his
store_origin: VN
region: Vietnam
---

# First Edition, Second Printing Landmark Supreme Court Case Historical 1963 Legal Impact Gideon's Trumpet: How One Man, a Poor Prisoner, Took His Case to the Supreme Court-and Changed theLaw of the United States

**Price:** 1032193₫
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Summary

> ⚖️ Own the story that redefined justice in America!

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Gideon's Trumpet: How One Man, a Poor Prisoner, Took His Case to the Supreme Court-and Changed theLaw of the United States
- **How much does it cost?** 1032193₫ with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.vn](https://www.desertcart.vn/products/1274052-gideons-trumpet-how-one-man-a-poor-prisoner-took-his)

## Best For

- Customers looking for quality international products

## Why This Product

- Free international shipping included
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## Key Features

- • **Expert Authorship:** Written by Anthony Lewis, a renowned Supreme Court reporter and Harvard law professor.
- • **Iconic First Edition:** Own a rare, collectible print that captures a pivotal moment in U.S. legal history.
- • **Civil Rights Essential:** A must-read for professionals passionate about justice, equality, and constitutional law.
- • **Supreme Court Spotlight:** Dive deep into the landmark Gideon v. Wainwright case that reshaped criminal justice rights.
- • **Timeless Legal Inspiration:** Discover how one man’s fight changed the law and continues to influence today’s legal landscape.

## Overview

Gideon's Trumpet is a first edition, second printing book by Anthony Lewis that chronicles Clarence Earl Gideon's historic 1963 Supreme Court case. This landmark decision guaranteed the right to legal counsel for indigent defendants in state courts, fundamentally transforming American criminal justice. Written by a seasoned Supreme Court reporter and Harvard law professor, this book offers an inspiring, detailed account of a case that reshaped constitutional law and civil rights.

## Description

From the Publisher

Review: Inspirational writing at its best - Clarence Earl Gideon was arrested for a petty crime, and because he couldn’t afford one, asked for an attorney to represent him in court. His request was denied. He was convicted and sentenced to five years in the Florida State Prison. Using a pencil and prison letterhead, he appealed to the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari. Arguing that the lower court had deprived him of his Sixth Amendment right to have an attorney for his defense and that he had been denied due process under the Fourteenth Amendment, Gideon told the Court that as a layman he was incapable of defending himself. Gideon’s chance of finding a needle in a haystack was infinitely greater than having his case heard by the Supreme Court. But it was. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) changed the whole course of American legal history. Gideon’s incredible story, and the story of how the Supreme Court chooses and decides cases, is the subject of this very readable book by Anthony Lewis. Lewis knows the ins and outs of the American judicial system. He was a New York Times reporter who covered the Supreme Court from 1957 to 1964. He also taught law at Harvard from 1974 to 1989. The Supreme Court receives some 2500 appeals each term (or did so at the time of Gideon’s appeal) of which 150 are actually granted a hearing. “Review by the Supreme Court is in the interest of the law, its appropriate exposition and enforcement, not in the mere interest of the litigants,” the author quotes Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes. In other words, the Court accepted Gideon’s appeal not out of the goodness of its heart but to address a legal issue. The issue that interested the Court was whether or not criminal defendants tried in state court who were unable to afford an attorney, and not provided one by the state, were being denied their Constitutional rights. In federal court, defendants without means were provided legal counsel by court. Under federal law, it was their Constitutional right. But under state law? That was a different issue all together. The states were not bound by Bill of Rights guarantees. “Our Constitution created a system of dual governments, state and federal, each with its own laws,” writes the author. Tried in a state court, Gideon was not guaranteed the right to an attorney. Fortunately for him, issues of federal law sometimes arise in state courts, and therefore can be appealed, and this was one. Twenty years earlier, in a similar case (Betts v. Brady, 1942), the Court ruled in favor of the state—an indigent criminal defendant did not have the right to an attorney. By 1962, when Gideon filed his appeal, the makeup of the court had changed significantly (more liberal/more activist) and decided to reexamine the merit’s of the Court’s prior decision. Having accepted Gideon’s appeal, the Court asked one of the top attorneys in the nation (future Supreme Court justice Abe Fortas) to represent Gideon. Working pro bono, Fortas put the expertise of his powerful Washington law firm to work on the case, with no stone left unturned. The state of Florida, meanwhile, assigned a 26-year-old assistant attorney general named Bruce Robert Jacob to represent the state. He argued that defendants without means were perfectly capable of acting as their own attorney. Indeed, Gideon had done quite well for himself in court, in a losing case. Jacob also made an appeal to all 49 states to file friend-of-court briefs on behalf of Florida. There was one very big problem, however: 23 states favored a new standard of fairness on state criminal procedure. Only two states—Alabama and North Carolina—spoke up for Florida. The Court’s ruling was unanimous. As with state capital offenses, defendants who could not afford an attorney now must be provided one by the state. Gideon’s conviction was overturned. He was assigned an attorney and his case was retried in a Florida court. This time, he won, and was released from prison. Gideon v. Wainwright was one of three Supreme Court decisions to significantly alter criminal procedure so that it better protected the rights of the accused. The other two are Miranda v. Arizona (1966) and Mapp v. Ohio (1961). Conservative critics have accused the court in such cases as legislating rather adjudicating the law. Perhaps. But how much longer would it have taken Congress to pass such legislation, if ever? Justice Walter Schaefer of Illinois has advanced “the relation of the United States to the rest of the world” today as one argument for national standards of criminal procedure. “The quality of a nation’s civilization can be largely measured by the method it uses in the enforcement of its criminal law.” Adds the author, “The Supreme Court is in a strategic position to give voice to national ideals.” Brilliant book.
Review: We Still Don't come close to com;lying with the Supreme Court Mandate - This book was great, especially for somebody who's training to become a legal professional, but really for all U.S. Citizens who want to understand how our justice system works in the highest court in the land. Unfortunately, many jurisdictions still don't comply with the Supreme Court Mandate that indigent defendants charged with a crime cannot receive a fair trial without a criminal defense attorney! This is costing us a bundle, because it's expensive to keep people in jail & we're broke. Not to mention that, in the cases where innocent people are convicted without a fair trial, we still have the criminals free among us & they are going to commit more crimes because they've learned they can get away with it! I would recommend this book for anybody who is concerned about civil rights and our justice system. And if you read this one you'll also want to read "Chasing Gideon," which talks about current problems with indigent defense in various jurisdictions. This will give you a clearer picture of what's happening now. This book, "Chasing Gideon," is also available through desertcart.

## Features

- First Edition, Second Printing THUS

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #58,022 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #12 in Legal History (Books) #46 in Civil Rights & Liberties (Books) #1,040 in United States History (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 433 Reviews |

## Images

![Gideon's Trumpet: How One Man, a Poor Prisoner, Took His Case to the Supreme Court-and Changed theLaw of the United States - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61MaIuIeTnL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Inspirational writing at its best
*by R***O on April 1, 2017*

Clarence Earl Gideon was arrested for a petty crime, and because he couldn’t afford one, asked for an attorney to represent him in court. His request was denied. He was convicted and sentenced to five years in the Florida State Prison. Using a pencil and prison letterhead, he appealed to the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari. Arguing that the lower court had deprived him of his Sixth Amendment right to have an attorney for his defense and that he had been denied due process under the Fourteenth Amendment, Gideon told the Court that as a layman he was incapable of defending himself. Gideon’s chance of finding a needle in a haystack was infinitely greater than having his case heard by the Supreme Court. But it was. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) changed the whole course of American legal history. Gideon’s incredible story, and the story of how the Supreme Court chooses and decides cases, is the subject of this very readable book by Anthony Lewis. Lewis knows the ins and outs of the American judicial system. He was a New York Times reporter who covered the Supreme Court from 1957 to 1964. He also taught law at Harvard from 1974 to 1989. The Supreme Court receives some 2500 appeals each term (or did so at the time of Gideon’s appeal) of which 150 are actually granted a hearing. “Review by the Supreme Court is in the interest of the law, its appropriate exposition and enforcement, not in the mere interest of the litigants,” the author quotes Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes. In other words, the Court accepted Gideon’s appeal not out of the goodness of its heart but to address a legal issue. The issue that interested the Court was whether or not criminal defendants tried in state court who were unable to afford an attorney, and not provided one by the state, were being denied their Constitutional rights. In federal court, defendants without means were provided legal counsel by court. Under federal law, it was their Constitutional right. But under state law? That was a different issue all together. The states were not bound by Bill of Rights guarantees. “Our Constitution created a system of dual governments, state and federal, each with its own laws,” writes the author. Tried in a state court, Gideon was not guaranteed the right to an attorney. Fortunately for him, issues of federal law sometimes arise in state courts, and therefore can be appealed, and this was one. Twenty years earlier, in a similar case (Betts v. Brady, 1942), the Court ruled in favor of the state—an indigent criminal defendant did not have the right to an attorney. By 1962, when Gideon filed his appeal, the makeup of the court had changed significantly (more liberal/more activist) and decided to reexamine the merit’s of the Court’s prior decision. Having accepted Gideon’s appeal, the Court asked one of the top attorneys in the nation (future Supreme Court justice Abe Fortas) to represent Gideon. Working pro bono, Fortas put the expertise of his powerful Washington law firm to work on the case, with no stone left unturned. The state of Florida, meanwhile, assigned a 26-year-old assistant attorney general named Bruce Robert Jacob to represent the state. He argued that defendants without means were perfectly capable of acting as their own attorney. Indeed, Gideon had done quite well for himself in court, in a losing case. Jacob also made an appeal to all 49 states to file friend-of-court briefs on behalf of Florida. There was one very big problem, however: 23 states favored a new standard of fairness on state criminal procedure. Only two states—Alabama and North Carolina—spoke up for Florida. The Court’s ruling was unanimous. As with state capital offenses, defendants who could not afford an attorney now must be provided one by the state. Gideon’s conviction was overturned. He was assigned an attorney and his case was retried in a Florida court. This time, he won, and was released from prison. Gideon v. Wainwright was one of three Supreme Court decisions to significantly alter criminal procedure so that it better protected the rights of the accused. The other two are Miranda v. Arizona (1966) and Mapp v. Ohio (1961). Conservative critics have accused the court in such cases as legislating rather adjudicating the law. Perhaps. But how much longer would it have taken Congress to pass such legislation, if ever? Justice Walter Schaefer of Illinois has advanced “the relation of the United States to the rest of the world” today as one argument for national standards of criminal procedure. “The quality of a nation’s civilization can be largely measured by the method it uses in the enforcement of its criminal law.” Adds the author, “The Supreme Court is in a strategic position to give voice to national ideals.” Brilliant book.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ We Still Don't come close to com;lying with the Supreme Court Mandate
*by J***O on June 1, 2013*

This book was great, especially for somebody who's training to become a legal professional, but really for all U.S. Citizens who want to understand how our justice system works in the highest court in the land. Unfortunately, many jurisdictions still don't comply with the Supreme Court Mandate that indigent defendants charged with a crime cannot receive a fair trial without a criminal defense attorney! This is costing us a bundle, because it's expensive to keep people in jail & we're broke. Not to mention that, in the cases where innocent people are convicted without a fair trial, we still have the criminals free among us & they are going to commit more crimes because they've learned they can get away with it! I would recommend this book for anybody who is concerned about civil rights and our justice system. And if you read this one you'll also want to read "Chasing Gideon," which talks about current problems with indigent defense in various jurisdictions. This will give you a clearer picture of what's happening now. This book, "Chasing Gideon," is also available through Amazon.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Interesting Book to Read
*by J***G on December 20, 2023*

What an interesting book! I got this book for my husband who loves to read. He really enjoys reading it! And shipping package was wonderfully packed.

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*Last updated: 2026-03-16*