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Constitutional Law Keyed to Choper
Griffin v. Illinois
Citation:
351 U.S. 12 (1956)Facts
Judson Griffin and James Crenshaw were convicted of armed robbery in the Criminal Court of Cook County, Illinois. Immediately after their conviction, they filed a motion requesting that a free certified copy of the entire trial record, including a transcript of proceedings, be furnished to them for appeal purposes. They alleged they were too poor to pay for these documents. Under Illinois law, defendants needed a bill of exceptions or report of proceedings to obtain full appellate review, which often required a transcript. While Illinois provided free transcripts to indigent defendants in capital cases, all other defendants had to purchase their own. The trial court denied their motion without a hearing. They then filed a petition under the Illinois Post-Conviction Hearing Act, alleging that the failure to provide free transcripts solely because of their poverty violated their constitutional rights. This petition was also dismissed, and the Illinois Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal.
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