Scope Note This collection contains documentation of the involvement of General Charles L. Decker with the National Defender Project. The collection includes original documentation regarding grant inquiries, proposals, reports, presentations, congressional testimony, personal correspondence, research materials, brochures and seminar materials, budgetary documentation, journal and newspaper articles, legislative and regulatory materials, and other documentation. Specific topics...

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Bruce Jacob argued the case of Gideon v. Wainwright on behalf of the State of Florida as a young Assistant Attorney General. In this oral history interview, Jacob recalls his extensive preparation for the case.

Abstract Justice Earl Johnson Jr. recounts his legal education, his studies for an L.L.M. in criminal law with Gary Bellow at Northwestern University; his move to Washington, D.C. in 1961, his work for the Organized Crime and Racketeering Section at the U.S. Department of Justice, how in 1964 he came to work as Deputy Director under Julian Dugas for Neighborhood Legal Services in Washington, D.C., the rapid expansion of the NLSP program with one of the early OEO grants, his position as deputy...

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In this interview, Krash recalls Fortas’ defense strategy, and reflected about the impact of the case as one of the landmark cases of constitutional law in the last fifty years. At the same time, he emphasized that “all of the hopes that we had have not been fulfilled.”

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In this interview, Lewis recalls how he became involved in Gideon v. Wainwright after seeing Gideon’s petition in the Supreme Court file room on June 4th, 1962, the day the Court agreed to hear the case.

He also recalls his impressions after meeting with Clarence Gideon in the prison library of the Raiford Penitentiary.