3.15 The Sixth Amendment
Chantel Chauvin and Lore Rutz-Burri
Sixth Amendment Protections
The Sixth Amendment states, “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.” The Sixth Amendment guarantees several protections to a criminal defendant in court—namely, the right to a speedy trial, the right to a public trial, the right to a jury trial, the right to have his or her trial in the district where the crime took place, the right to be told what charges have been filed, the right to confront witnesses at trial, the right to compel witnesses to testify at trial, and the right to assistance of counsel. This amendment governs the federal court process, but because of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, these rights also apply to defendants in state criminal cases.
At the same time, we must consider that the text of the Sixth Amendment does not include the many limitations that are imposed upon these rights in practice, nor does it specify the meaning of a “speedy” trial. In fact, a “speedy” trial time frame may be different from state to state and between state and federal court. Following the Speedy Trial Act of 1974, federal prosecutors essentially have 100 days to get to trial following the arrest of an individual on federal charges—30 days after the arrest to secure an indictment and then 70 days post-indictment to begin trial. (Interestingly, Congress has also passed legislation imposing a minimum time from arrest to trial—30 days—so that defendants have adequate time to prepare.) The 100-day window imposed by the Speedy Trial Act, however, does not account for delays that are imposed by the defendant. (See more conditions by reading up on Barker v. Wingo, linked below.)
The Speedy Trial Act does not apply to cases filed in state courts. However, many states do have regulations for speedy trials. In Louisiana, individuals who are charged with a felony criminal offense must be brought to trial within 180 days of their arrest; moreover, if the defendant is held in pre-trial custody, the speedy trial clock is shortened to only 120 days. Of course, the vast majority of cases in both state and federal court are dealt with through plea bargaining, and thus never get to trial. (More details about the right to a speedy trial in Louisiana can be found in the Louisiana Laws Code of Criminal Procedure Article 701.)
Landmark Case: Gideon v. Wainwright
In 1961, Clarence Earl Gideon was arrested for petty larceny in Panama City, Florida, after an unknown witness reported seeing him leave the Bay Harbor Pool Room early in the morning carrying a bottle of wine, Coca-Cola, and change. Brought before a judge, Gideon stated that he could not afford a lawyer but believed that the state was responsible for providing him with an attorney. In fact, Florida only extended indigent defense—a lawyer appointed by and paid for by the state—for individuals facing capital offenses. After conviction, Gideon appealed his case from prison, citing a violation of his Sixth Amendment rights—and the Supreme Court agreed. The Court’s decision in Gideon officially incorporated the Sixth Amendment to states, extending the right to indigent defense (a public or court-appointed defender) to anyone facing criminal charges that could be punished with six months or more of incarceration.
Gideon v. Wainwright also has a podcast episode from the Washington Post‘s podcast Constitutional.
Read up on more landmark cases concerning the Sixth Amendment here: Barker v. Wingo; Strunk v. United States.