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Chewning v. Cunningham, 368 U.S. 443 (1962)
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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.
Chewning v. Cunningham, 368 U.S. 443 (1962)
Chewning v. Cunningham No. 63 Argued December 4-5, 1961 Decided February 19, 1962 368 U.S. 443
CERTIORARI TO THE SUPREME COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA
Syllabus
In a trial in a Virginia court at which he requested but was denied counsel, petitioner was convicted of having been three times convicted and sentenced for felonies, and he was sentenced to 10 years’ additional imprisonment. The applicable statute provides that, when it appears that a person convicted of an offense has been previously sentenced "to a like punishment," he may be tried on an information that alleges "the existence of records of prior convictions and the identity of the prisoner named in each," and it leaves to the trial court’s discretion the length of the sentence which may be imposed for three or more convictions. Under Virginia law, not only the identity of the prisoner and the existence of the records, but also the validity of the prior convictions, may be at issue in such a proceeding.
Held: trial on a charge of being a habitual criminal is such a serious one, the issues presented under Virginia’s statute are so complex, and the potential prejudice resulting from the absence of counsel is so great that petitioner’s trial and conviction without counsel violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Pp. 443-447.
Reversed.
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Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Chewning v. Cunningham, 368 U.S. 443 (1962) in 368 U.S. 443 Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=ZT9G3T1TT8RDE21.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Chewning v. Cunningham, 368 U.S. 443 (1962), in 368 U.S. 443, Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=ZT9G3T1TT8RDE21.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Chewning v. Cunningham, 368 U.S. 443 (1962). cited in 1962, 368 U.S. 443. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=ZT9G3T1TT8RDE21.
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