Facts: Dr. Sam Sheppard was convicted of second-degree murder after the death of his wife. Sheppard claimed he was innocent and on the evening of her death, July 4, 1954, he had fallen asleep on the couch after their company had left. Sheppeard claims he woke up to his wife’s cries coming from upstairs in the early morning and when he went upstairs to check on her, he saw a “form” standing by their bed. He confronted the man and he was struck in the back of the neck and was knocked out. When he regained consciousness, he saw the form running out the door. Sheppard chased the man out of the house and was later knocked unconscious again. When Sheppard regained consciousness for the second time, he returned home where he confirmed his wife was deceased. Sheppeard filed a …show more content…
Sheppard then petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari.

Issue: Did the obsessive prejudicial medical coverage of Sheppard’s case impact his Fifth Amendment right to a fair trial?

Holding: Justice Clark delivered the 8-1 decision of the court for Sheppard where they reversed the denial of the hearing petition.

Rationale: For much of the majority opinion, the court talks about the severe mishandling of this case before Sheppard’s trial. The coroner from the start believed Sheppard was guilty and used the media to portray this. The coroner went as far as holding an inquest in a school gymnasium where it was broadcast, with many reporters and photographers in attendance. Sheppard was questioned for five and a half hours in front of hundreds of spectators and his legal counsel was not allowed to participate. The coroner kicked out Sheppard’s chief counsel from the inquest when he tried to place documents in the record. The media continued to publish newspapers talking about discrepancies in Sheppard’s statements and talking about supposed evidence that incriminated him. 75 people were selected as potential jurors 25 days before the trial. The names and addresses of these potential