Should a man who has been arrested for directly being involved with the murder of thousands of people on September 11 of 2001 have the right to have a defense attorney? The founders of our great nation who wrote the United States Constitution believe so. Not only that, but the United States government may provide that same alleged terrorist, accused of being a cotributer to the worst attack on America in history, with an attorney for free. This may seem to be an extreme situation where a defendant is awarded the right to defense council; however, now a days it ix not an uncommon one. Because of that reality, we are living through a revolutionary time period with a forever modernizing criminal justice system. In the past few years alone we have encountered several horrific acts of violence which challenged our freedoms and put our courts to the test. It is those extreme cases that make people question certain rights, such as the right to defense council. .
It is clearly written in the United States Constitution that a person does indeed have the right to defense council in a criminal case. The sixth amendment of the U.S. Constitution states:.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of council for his defense.?.
Because of the lack of specificity, the words of the sixth amendment can and have been interpreted in many different ways through out history. It is through case law which sets the parameters and limitations of the constitution including the sixth amendment. Like every other freedom, there are many issues of concern involved with the right to defense council: such as when should it be provided and for what price, the selection and rejection of it, what is the effectiveness of it, and most importantly what are the ethics of defending criminals?.
