Court Opinion

ID: 9524376
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 02:52:09.904881+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:09:42.719442
License: Public Domain

JUSTICE JIGANTI, dissenting: “[T]he use of convictions constitutionally invalid under Gideon v. Wainwright [(1963), 372 U.S. 335, 9 L. Ed. 2d 799, 83 S. Ct. 792] to impeach a defendant’s credibility deprives him of due process of law.” (Loper v. Beto (1972), 405 U.S. 473, 483, 31 L. Ed. 2d 374, 381, 92 S. Ct. 1014, 1019.) Martin-Trigona’s conviction in the Federal court was reversed because he did not have counsel as required under the holding of Gideon. A trial judge certainly could not have anticipated that the United States Court of Appeals was going to reverse the matter on the grounds that the defendant had no counsel. That is an unfortunate situation, as the Loper case points out. (405 U.S. 473, 484, 31 L. Ed. 2d 374, 382, 92 S. Ct. 1014, 1020.) However, the evidence was admitted and the issue is whether that admission was harmless error. In my judgment I cannot say that it is harmless, and consequently I believe that the cause should be reversed and remanded.