Overview

Alfredo Garcia, who has been both a prosecuting and a defense attorney in criminal processes, reviews the United States Supreme Court's interpretations of the Sixth Amendment--the right to a fair trial--as they have evolved since the 1960s. He determines that the Court, with a few notable exceptions, has demonstrated doctrinal inconsistency and has failed to adhere to the core values embedded in the amendment. Garcia argues that the functional and symbolic roles of the Sixth Amendment have been eroded, and that this is particularly evident in the three clauses that provide defendants the means to respond to charges and to be assured of fair process. The clauses considered specifically involve the right to counsel, the right to confrontation, and the right to compulsory process. The Supreme Court's emphasis in more recent years is perceived to be on efficiency rather than on protecting the ideal of a fair trial. The six chapters cover the rights to counsel, to confrontation, to compulsory process, to a speedy trial, and to a jury trial, and the sometime conflict between a free press (First Amendment) and the Sixth Amendment assurance of a fair trial free of antecedent prejudicial publicity. This is a timely, much-needed, and substantive examination of the highest court's interpretations of a defendant's constitutional right to a fair, speedy trial.

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9780313278778

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Reviews

Professor Garcia provides a thought-provoking analysis of the status of Sixth Amendment jurisprudence. He skillfully dissects the doctrinal development of the Amendment with concentration on the Supreme Court rulings of the past three decades. He provides an organizational framework for Sixth Amendment jurisprudence that can assist scholars as well as students of law. One can only hope that jurists will heed [Garcia's] warning and save our adversary system of adjudication. - Ellen S. Podgor Associate Professor of Law Georgia State University College of Law

Author Information

ALFREDO GARCIA teaches Criminal law and Procedure at the St. Thomas University School of Law. He has served as an Assistant State Attorney in Florida and as a criminal defense attorney at both the state and federal levels. He has written frequently on the Sixth Amendment in professional journals.

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