History and Development of the Sixth Amendment Essay

Muthu S. Weerasinghe Constitutional Law LS 305 – 01 Unit 7 Essay The Sixth Amendment of the Bill of Rights contains seven clauses that protect the rights of the accused. The amendment assures the accused that â€Å"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†¦show more content†¦Alabama, 287 U.S. 45 (1932). In this case eight, young black men were convicted and sentenced to death in a racially tense Alabama, where the trial was carried out expediently, while denying the right to counsel for the defendants. Once the case was heard by the Supreme Court, Justice Sutherland stated that â€Å"the Court, always requires the observance of certain fundamental personal rights associated with a hearing, and the right to the aid of counsel is of this fundamental character. (Assistance of counsel, 2004) Justice Sutherland included that The right to be heard would be, in many cases, of little avail if it did not comprehend the right to be heard by counsel. Even the intelligent and educated layman has small and sometimes no skill in the science of law. If charged with crimes, he is incapable, generally, of determining for himself whether the indictment is good or bad. He is unfamiliar with the rules of evidence. Left without the aid of counsel he may be put on trial without a proper charge, and convicted upon incompetent evidence, or evidence irrelevant to the issue or otherwise inadmissible. He lacks both the skill and knowledge adequately to prepare his defense, even though he have a perfect one. 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