Robert has been arrested for three counts of passing checks with insufficient funds, with amounts that were collectively a misdemeanor in his city of residence. If he is found guilty, Robert could serve five and a half months in jail. He has been reading the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and feels that he is entitled to an attorney. He also believes, however, that he can represent himself if he goes to trial. He also wants to move his trial to another city because he made the headlines recently when he ran for office. If he is convicted, he plans to claim that he had ineffective assistance of counsel because, after all, he is not an attorney. He wants to have a jury trial and bring in witnesses that can state he broke his hand and therefore could not be the individual who wrote the

Question

checks. What constitutional amendments will be considered, and what will the results likely be?

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answers will vary, but students must address that Robert may not have a Fifth Amendment right to a jury trial for a misdemeanor with less than 6 months possible sentencing, as it varies from state to state. If a trial takes place, it should be held in the jurisdiction where the crime was committed. If his state allows it, Robert is entitled to an impartial jury, but the court will need to decide whether his running for office and making the headlines will be sufficient to change the venue for an unbiased jury. Under the Sixth Amendment, Robert, as a criminal defendant, has an unqualified right to an attorney, and if it is shown that he is indeed indigent, he can have an attorney appointed to him for any critical stage of his charges. If Robert is shown to not be indigent, and he decides to represent himself and is convicted, he cannot later claim that it was due to ineffective assistance of counsel.