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Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501 (1976)
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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.
Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501 (1976)
Estelle v. Williams No. 74-676 Argued October 7, 1975 Decided May 3, 1976 425 U.S. 501
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
Syllabus
Respondent, who was charged with a criminal offense and held in custody awaiting trial, asked a jail officer on the morning of trial for his civilian clothes to wear at trial; no action was taken. During voir dire, his counsel expressly referred to respondent’s jail attire. At no time before or during the ensuing jury trial was the issue raised to the trial judge concerning the jail attire. Respondent, whose conviction was upheld on appeal, sought federal habeas corpus. The District Court denied relief, but the Court of Appeals reversed. Though there was evidence that, in the county where the trial occurred, the majority of nonbailed defendants were tried in jail clothes, there was no evidence that such a practice was followed if timely objection was made to the trial judge; and the practice of the particular trial judge was to permit any accused who so desired to be tried in civilian garb.
Held: Although the State cannot, consistent with the Fourteenth Amendment, compel an accused to stand trial before a jury while dressed in identifiable prison clothes, the failure to make an objection to the court as to being tried in such clothes negates the presence of the compulsion necessary to establish a constitutional violation. Nothing in the record here warrants a conclusion that respondent was compelled to stand trial in jail garb or that there was sufficient reason to excuse the failure to raise the issue before trial. Pp. 503-513.
500 F.2d 206, reversed and remanded.
BURGER, C.J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which STEWART, WHITE, BLACKMUN, POWELL, and REHNQUIST, JJ., joined. POWELL, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which STEWART, J., joined, post, p. 513. BRENNAN, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which MARSHALL, J., joined, post, p. 515. STEVENS, J., took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.
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Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501 (1976) in 425 U.S. 501 425 U.S. 502. Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=XMC8YQWHNXJNUEH.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501 (1976), in 425 U.S. 501, page 425 U.S. 502. Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=XMC8YQWHNXJNUEH.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501 (1976). cited in 1976, 425 U.S. 501, pp.425 U.S. 502. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=XMC8YQWHNXJNUEH.
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