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22-563: In Barker v. Wingo (1972), the Supreme Court developed a four-part test that considers the length of the delay, the reasons for the delay, the defendant's assertion of his right to a speedy trial, and the prejudice to the defendant. A violation of the Speedy Trial Clause is cause for dismissal with prejudice of a criminal case. Within these parameters, it was determined that the five-year wait for this case to go trial

44-490: A case to ensure that no one's interests are being implicated. Barker v. Wingo Barker v. Wingo , 407 U.S. 514 (1972), was a United States Supreme Court case involving the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution , specifically the right of defendants in criminal cases to a speedy trial . The Court held that determinations of whether or not the right to a speedy trial has been violated must be made on

66-500: A case-by-case basis, and set forth four factors to be considered in the determination. On July 20, 1958, an elderly couple in Christian County, Kentucky were murdered in their home by intruders, later identified as Willie Barker and Silas Manning. Believing that the case against Manning was the stronger of the two, and that Manning's testimony was needed to convict Barker (in his own case, Manning exercised his right under

88-413: A case-by-case basis, whether a defendant has been prejudiced by the lack of a speedy trial: Taking these factors into consideration, though, Barker's conviction was upheld. The court agreed that the period of time between initial arrest and trial – over five years – was "extraordinary" and that only seven months of the delay was justifiable (the period of the ex-sheriff's illness). However,

110-701: A conviction against Manning; it would not be until December 1962 that Manning would be convicted in the second of the two murders. As the Christian County Circuit Court only held three terms each year (in February, June, and September), for each term the prosecution would seek a continuance in the Barker case, until the beginning of the following term, while the Manning cases were ongoing. Barker, through his counsel, did not object to any of

132-423: A four-year term. The chief judge assigns judges and cases to panels. The current chief judge is Larry E. Thompson. The court usually sits in three judge panels. Membership of the panels rotate so that all judges sit on at least one panel with each of their colleagues in any given year. Usually one judge is chosen to author the majority opinion for each panel in a particular case. The Kentucky Court of Appeals has

154-487: A further continuance) and that the eight-month period between February and October 1963 (the period between the objection and the actual trial) was not unduly long. Further, the Sixth Circuit ruled that granting a continuance based on the sheriff's illness was a justifiable reason for a delay. The United States Supreme Court granted a writ of certiorari in 1972. The Supreme Court first noted that "[t]he right to

176-745: A headquarters building and courtroom in Frankfort , the state capital, but unlike the Kentucky Supreme Court, the three-judge panels of the Kentucky Court of Appeals frequently hear cases in courthouses all over Kentucky. The Kentucky Court of Appeals hears appeals from the Kentucky Circuit Courts , with the exception of criminal cases involving sentences of death , life imprisonment , or imprisonment of twenty years or more, in which appeals are taken directly to

198-520: A speedy trial is generically different from any of the other rights enshrined in the Constitution for the protection of the accused" for three reasons: The Court then noted that there were two competing approaches as to how to handle the uncertainty regarding "how long is too long"; neither of which it accepted: As a balancing test, the Court adopted four factors to be considered in determining, on

220-468: The Fifth Amendment to not incriminate himself), the prosecution chose to try Manning first, hoping that once convicted, Manning would later voluntarily testify against Barker. At the outset of Manning's trial on October 23, 1958, the prosecution sought and obtained the first of what would be 16 continuances in Barker's trial. The prosecution, however, encountered numerous difficulties in getting

242-486: The Court also ruled that Barker was not prejudiced by the delay, since none of Barker's witnesses were harmed by the delay. More importantly, the Court determined that Barker did not want a speedy trial (a fact that Barker's counsel conceded at oral argument). The Court speculated that Barker's reason was his gambling on Manning's acquittal (the evidence against Manning not being strong as evidenced by two hung juries and two appellate court reversals), believing that if Manning

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264-549: The Kentucky Court of Appeals was the only appellate court in Kentucky. The Court of Appeals has 14 members. Two members are elected from each of seven districts and serve eight-year terms of office. The Kentucky Court of Appeals judges are elected from districts that mirror the seven districts which elect the seven justices of the Supreme Court of Kentucky. The 14 judges select one colleague to serve as chief judge for

286-534: The Kentucky Supreme Court. In addition, original actions may be filed with the Kentucky Court of Appeals in certain situations. Prior to the 1975 constitutional amendment the Clerk of the Court of Appeals was an elected position. This elected position was abolished by the 1975 constitutional amendment. Former governor Martha Layne Collins served as Clerk of the Court of Appeals before her election as Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Kentucky . Judges were elected on

308-481: The case) as well as the 16th continuance (June 1963, requested for the sheriff's continued illness; while granting the continuance the Circuit Court ruled that the matter had to come to trial at the next term or would be dismissed for lack of prosecution). The final trial date was set for October 9, 1963 and on that date, after Barker's counsel made another unsuccessful motion to dismiss on speedy trial grounds,

330-576: The charges are dismissed by action of law without regard to the merits of the case. This is also known as a "ready rule". The federal law detailing this right is the Speedy Trial Act of 1974. All U.S. states have either statutes or constitutional provisions detailing this right. In 1979 the Act was amended to ensure that the defendant had time to provide a suitable defense. This amendment made it so trial could not start within less than 30 days after

352-412: The defendant first appeared in the court. In Doggett v. United States (1992) the Supreme Court determined that Doggett's eight and a half year wait for a trial violated his sixth amendment rights. In Zedner v. United States (2006) the Supreme Court determined that a defendant cannot waive his right to a speedy trial using the Speedy Trial Clause because the clause protects all parties involved in

374-420: The first eleven continuances. But on the 12th continuance (February 1962) Barker's counsel filed a motion to dismiss on speedy trial grounds, which was rejected. Barker's counsel did not object to the 13th or 14th continuances, but objected to the 15th continuance (March 1963 on the date of Barker's trial; the prosecution sought a continuance due to illness of the former sheriff, the chief investigating officer in

396-491: The petition, it granted Barker the right to proceed in forma pauperis and a certificate of probable cause to appeal. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the District Court's decision in 1971. The Sixth Circuit argued that Barker had waived any speedy trial claims up through February 1963 (which the Sixth Circuit erroneously believed was the first date that Barker's counsel objected to

418-619: The trial was finally commenced; with Manning the chief prosecution witness, Barker was convicted and given a life sentence. Barker appealed his conviction on speedy trial grounds to the Kentucky Court of Appeals , which affirmed it in 1964. In 1970 Barker filed a habeas corpus petition in the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky . Though the District Court denied

440-556: Was a justifiable reason). Justice White, joined by Justice Brennan, concurred in the verdict, and specifically commented that an overcrowded docket would not be a reasonable basis for a delay. Kentucky Court of Appeals The Kentucky Court of Appeals is the lower of Kentucky 's two appellate courts , under the Kentucky Supreme Court . Prior to a 1975 amendment to the Kentucky Constitution

462-542: Was acquitted, he would never be tried (which Barker's counsel also conceded at oral argument). The Court further noted that, after Barker's counsel objected to the February 1962 continuance, he did not object to the June or September 1962 continuances; only in March 1963, after Manning's convictions became final, were objections raised to further continuances (this time brought about by the ex-sheriff's illness, which Barker conceded

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484-450: Was not in violation of the Constitution. In response, in 1974, Congress passed the Speedy Trial Act . This Speedy trial clause protects defendants from waiting more than a certain amount of time for a trial. In addition to the constitutional guarantee, various state and federal statutes confer a more specific right to a speedy trial. In New York, the prosecution must be "ready for trial" within six months on all felonies except murder , or

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