The film “Gideon’s Trumpet” is about an elderly man, Clarence Earl Gideon, who is accused of breaking into the pool room and stealing money from the machines. Gideon was given two trials. The two trials differed in many ways; one of the trials was obviously unfair due to it not being constitutional according to the sixth Amendment. Police found the pool room in a mess the same night it was broken into. At the first arrival to the scene, a young man named Lester Wade was leaning against the building.
Police asked Wade a couple of questions about what he knew. Wade informs the police he saw Gideon and somewhat of his actions. Wade tells the police he saw Gideon break in and destroy the place and that afterwards he had gotten a cab. The policeman finds the cab driver and questions the cab driver and receives some very persuasive information as well. Gideon was implicated of breaking into the pool room at five-thirty in the morning and stealing five dollars from the cigarette machine and six dollars from the juke machine.
Gideon was also, supposedly, picked up by a cab, and was to tell the cab driver “if anyone asks, you didn’t see me. ” The policeman took all the evidence into consideration and set out to arrest Gideon for his assumed actions. The first trial was held on August 4, 1961. Before the trial was officially started, Gideon asked the judge for a lawyer because he could not afford one, his request was denied. The judge claimed that Gideon would just have to defend his own case. Leo Stafford, owner of the Pool Room, was the plaintiff’s first witness.
Stafford states that the Pool Room was broken into and five dollars from the cigarette machine and six dollars from the juke machine were stolen, all of which was change. The cab driver was also called the stand and stated that he picked up Gideon and before he got out the cab Gideon told him if anyone asked that the cab driver haven’t seen him. When it was time for Gideon to question the witnesses he did not handle the situation well. Gideon’s only and last witness was his land lady Ms. Courages. Gideon asked Ms. Courages if she known him to be a drunk and if she ever saw him drunk she replied back “no. ”
