In 1963, a poor man in a Florida jail changed American justice with a pencil. Clarence Earl Gideon had no lawyer, no money, and no power — so he wrote to the Supreme Court by hand. The Court listened.

The Supreme Court's 1963 decision in Gideon v. Wainwright is a pledge of equal justice under the law. It's up to us to uphold it. A mural in the Empire State Plaza Concourse is seen in this March 18, ...

The Legislature stabilized the immediate crisis, but future access to court-appointed defense lawyers remains uncertain.

Karen Houppert has written a book of nightmares. Houppert, a veteran reporter for, among others, The Washington Post and The New York Times, is the author of “Chasing Gideon: the Elusive Quest for ...

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Gideon's Promise is building a public defender movement to amplify the voice of impacted communities and transform criminal justice.

Atlanta-based nonprofit Gideon’s Promise is holding an intensive training session at the University of Mississippi School of Law for the newest class of public defenders undergoing their three-year ...

Fifty years ago on March 18, 1963, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision Gideon v. Wainwright, establishing that people accused of crimes have the right to a lawyer regardless of their ...

Karen Houppert has written a book of nightmares. Houppert, a veteran reporter for, among others, The Washington Post and The New York Times, is the author of "Chasing Gideon: the Elusive Quest for ...