Editorial: Shapiro hears Gideon’s trumpet
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State capitals from Honolulu to Augusta, Maine, heard Gideon’s trumpet when the U.S. Supreme Court sounded it in 1963. But Harrisburg has remained deaf for 60 years to the clarion call to provide lawyers for indigent criminal defendants.
The court ruled on March 18, 1963, in Gideon v. Wainwright. A drifter with an eighth-grade education, Clarence Earl Gideon was convicted in Florida of burglary and sentenced to five years in prison. He could not afford to hire a lawyer, and the judge refused to appoint one.
After losing state appeals, Gideon filed a hand-written petition to the U.S. Supreme Court. It reversed his conviction and established the right to legal counsel regardless of income. When retried with the assistance of counsel, Gideon was acquitted.
Harvard law professor and New York Times columnist Anthony Lewis detailed the groundbreaking case in his 1964 book, “Gideon’s Trumpet.”
Since 1963, Pennsylvania and South Dakota have been the only two state governments not to contribute to criminal defense, even though the benefits of doing so go beyond meeting the constitutional mandate for equal protection under the law. Competent representation helps to prevent convictions of innocent people, works against unduly long sentences and limits the number of cases that are overturned, all of which saves millions of tax dollars.
In Pennsylvania, the cost of indigent criminal defense is borne by county governments, which ensures widely disparate practices statewide. Pennsylvania’s 67 counties collectively spent about $125 million for public defender offices in 2020. Philadelphia spent $45.5 million and Allegheny County accounted for $9.2 million. According to the Legislature’s figures, county totals in Northeast Pennsylvania were: Lackawanna, $1.1 million; Luzerne, $2.46 million; Monroe, $1.8 million; Pike, $358,000; Susquehanna, $200,000; Wayne, $231,000; and Wyoming, $141,000.
Now, Gov. Josh Shapiro has heard Gideon’s trumpet. In his first budget, he proposed a $10 million state appropriation for indigent defense. But that should be only the beginning. The governor, a former attorney general, should assess the actual cost of adequate defense, establish standards to ensure that access is available statewide, and ensure that public defenders are well-compensated for their crucial roles in ensuring the fair administration of justice.