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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. One of the Justices asks Jacob if he believes all the prisoners currently jailed without benefit of an attorney are __________________.

2. Most prisoners currently jailed without the benefit of an attorney do not have which of the following characteristics that Gideon possesses?

3. Who writes a legal brief in support of Gideon after Walter Mondale's letter is circulated?

4. What do some attorneys consider oral arguments to be?

5. George Mantz of ____________ admits that his state's courts could soon follow the trend to appoint attorneys in all cases.

Short Essay Questions

1. How do Fortas and Jacob differ in their perceptions of Supreme Court procedure?

2. Before hearing Gideon's case, what are the Justices aware of regarding many of the cases they hear?

3. What could be the reason that the Supreme Court Justices selected Fortas to represent Gideon?

4. Compare and contrast the legal resources for Jacob representing states' rights and Fortas representing just one man.

5. What is the impact of the Gideon ruling regarding getting support for attorneys who are appointed to criminal cases?

6. What are a couple reasons that the Supreme Court works so well in terms of independent thinking?

7. What form of support does Jacob get to help him defend the state position in the trial?

8. What major points stem from revising the method of assigning attorneys who are not compensated?

9. Why is Gideon's Supreme Court case called Gideon vs. Wainwright?

10. What does John Hart Ely discover about Florida cases while doing research for Gideon's Supreme Court case?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Create a brief character study of Abe Fortas. What does he look like? What are his positive personality traits? What are some of his negative characteristics? What are his hopes and fears? What is his primary motivation?

Essay Topic 2

Gideon changed the course of American law by petitioning for justice in the area of rights to an attorney. Who might be the next Gideon? Name two causes that are important in the United States today and how their passage would significantly alter the laws in America. What do you think the chances are of the causes passing and affecting change? Explain.

Essay Topic 3

In Gideon's Supreme Court case, Abe Fortas is assigned to represent him while Bruce Jacob represents the state's rights. Compare and contrast Abe Fortas and Bruce Jacob. What similarities do they share? How are they different? Do you think the Supreme Court Justices knew what they were doing when they appointed Fortas to Gideon's case? Explain.

(see the answer keys)

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