Gideon v. Wainwright
When Gideon was decided, there were still 13 states that did not always give lawyers to poor criminal defendants. Like in Florida, many of these poor defendants did not get fair trials because they did not have a lawyer's help. After the Gideon decision, every person who is charged with a crime, in any court in the United States, has the right to a lawyer  even if they cannot pay for one. Defendants can decide they do not want a lawyer, but when they do that, they are giving up their right to a lawyer because they want to.