Apply the Bill of Rights to real Supreme Court cases

Grade 8 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Gideon v. Wainwright (decided March 18, 1963)

   Box Facts: Clarence Earl Gideon was charged in Florida with breaking and entering; he asked for a lawyer because he could not afford one; Florida law allowed one only in capital cases; he defended himself and was found guilty. Box Question: Does the Sixth Amendment right to a lawyer apply in state courts?. Box Holding (unanimous): yes: the right to counsel applies to the states; it overruled an earlier case, Betts v. Brady (1942). Box Right and power: Sixth Amendment counsel, limiting state courts, through the Fourteenth Amendment's due process. Arrows: from Facts to Question: raise; from Question to Holding: answered by. Line 1 (Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), 372 U.S. 335 (1963)): "…any person haled into court, who is too poor to hire a lawyer, cannot be assured a fair trial unless counsel is provided for him." Below the diagram: Gideon sent the Supreme Court a handwritten petition.

2. 1.

   What was Gideon charged with, Bo asks?

   • Speaking at a public meeting in a park
   • Refusing to vote
   • Wearing an armband
   • Breaking and entering
3. 2.

   Why did the judge refuse Gideon a lawyer, Esme asks?

   • Florida allowed one only in capital cases
   • Gideon did not ask
   • Lawyers were not allowed in Florida
   • Gideon was rich
4. 3.

   How did the Court decide, Jun asks?

   • It did not decide
   • 7 to 2, for Florida
   • By a vote of 5 to 4, for Gideon
   • Unanimously, for Gideon
5. 4.

   By line 1, who cannot be assured a fair trial without counsel, Kira asks?

   • A person who already has a lawyer of their own
   • A juror
   • A person too poor to hire a lawyer
   • A judge in a state court
6. 5.

   In line 1, what does haled into court mean, Milo asks?

   • Cheered in court
   • Kept out of court
   • Paid to judge a case
   • Brought into court on a charge
7. 6.

   Which amendment's right did Gideon apply to the states, Noah asks?

   • The Sixth
   • The First
   • The Eighth
   • The Fourth
8. 7.

   Through which amendment did the right reach state courts, Pia asks?

   • The Fourteenth
   • The Thirteenth
   • The Tenth
   • The Ninth
9. 8.

   Which earlier case did Gideon overrule, Ren asks?

   • Marbury v. Madison
   • Tinker v. Des Moines
   • Miranda v. Arizona
   • Betts v. Brady
10. 9.

    How many years after Betts (1942) was Gideon decided, Tala asks?

    • 21 years
    • 11 years
    • 3,905 years
    • 31 years
11. 10.

    How did Gideon ask the Supreme Court to hear his case, by the note, Ari asks?

    • By wearing an armband
    • Through a vote of Congress
    • With a handwritten petition
    • With a typed letter from Florida's governor