This video, produced by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, judges and public defenders make the case for why everyone has a stake in the right to counsel.
“It’s protecting every one of us from government overreach,” said Akin Adepoju, Branch Chief, Federal Defender Services, Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. “It’s a way we keep the government in check. The Founders of this country recognized the importance of that, and that’s why it’s in the Constitution.”
Judges and attorneys in the video tell the story of the landmark Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright, which is 60 years old this year. The video is the latest installment in the Court Shorts series of brief videos on pillars of court literacy: rule of law, separation of powers, and judicial impartiality. The series is in the lineup of educational videos on the federal judiciary’s YouTube channel.
Featured in the video are U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Feldman, of the Western District of New York; U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake, District of Maryland; U.S. District Judge Raner C. Collins, District of Arizona; Federal Public Defender Kyana K. Givens, Massachusetts; Federal Public Defender Eric A. Vos, Puerto Rico; and Akin Adepoju, of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts’ Defender Services Office.