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Townsend v. Burke, 334 U.S. 736 (1948)
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General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
Townsend v. Burke, 334 U.S. 736 (1948)
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Townsend v. Burke No. 542 Argued April 27, 1948 Decided June 14, 1948 334 U.S. 736
CERTIORARI TO THE SUPREME COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA
Syllabus
1. That a defendant convicted in a state court of a noncapital offense on a plea of guilty had been held incommunicado for a period of 40 hours between his arrest and his plea of guilty has no bearing on the validity of his conviction -- particularly when he makes no allegation that the circumstances of his detention induced his plea of guilty. Pp. 737-738.
2. Where a defendant so convicted was not represented by counsel and it appears from the record that, while the court was considering the sentence to be imposed, the defendant actually was prejudiced either by the prosecution’s submission of misinformation regarding his prior criminal record or by the court’s careless misreading of that record, he was denied due process of law, and the conviction cannot be sustained. Pp. 738-741.
Reversed.
Certiorari, 332 U.S. 854, to review denial of writ of habeas corpus by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Reversed, p. 741.
Contents:
Chicago:
U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Townsend v. Burke, 334 U.S. 736 (1948) in 334 U.S. 736 334 U.S. 737. Original Sources, accessed June 30, 2025, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=4H6C1NEAMDSDZC7.
MLA:
U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Townsend v. Burke, 334 U.S. 736 (1948), in 334 U.S. 736, page 334 U.S. 737. Original Sources. 30 Jun. 2025. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=4H6C1NEAMDSDZC7.
Harvard:
U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Townsend v. Burke, 334 U.S. 736 (1948). cited in 1948, 334 U.S. 736, pp.334 U.S. 737. Original Sources, retrieved 30 June 2025, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=4H6C1NEAMDSDZC7.
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