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Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 145 (1968)
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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.
Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 145 (1968)
Duncan v. Louisiana No. 410 Argued January 17, 1968 Decided May 20, 1968 391 U.S. 145
APPEAL FROM THE SUPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA.
Syllabus
Under Louisiana law, simple battery is a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum of two years’ imprisonment and a $300 fine. Appellant was convicted of simple battery and sentenced to 60 days in prison and a fine of $150. He had requested a jury trial, which was denied because the Louisiana Constitution grants jury trials only in cases where capital punishment or imprisonment at hard labor may be imposed. The Louisiana Supreme Court denied certiorari.
Held:
1. Since trial by jury in criminal cases is fundamental to the American scheme of justice, the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees a right of jury trial in all criminal cases which, were they tried in a federal court, would come within the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of trial by jury. Pp. 147-158.
2. The penalty authorized for a particular crime is of major relevance in determining whether it is a serious one subject to the mandates of the Sixth Amendment, and it is sufficient here, without defining the boundary between petty offenses and serious crimes, to hold that a crime punishable by two years in prison is a serious crime, and that appellant was entitled to a jury trial. Pp. 159-162.
250 La. 253, 195 So.2d 142, reversed and remanded.
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Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 145 (1968) in 391 U.S. 145 391 U.S. 146. Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=LFWJP5ZBA9Y2SRP.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 145 (1968), in 391 U.S. 145, page 391 U.S. 146. Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=LFWJP5ZBA9Y2SRP.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 145 (1968). cited in 1968, 391 U.S. 145, pp.391 U.S. 146. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=LFWJP5ZBA9Y2SRP.
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