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Hoyt v. Florida

Significance, Court Upholds Double Standard Regarding Jury Service, First Use Of The Temporary Insanity Plea



Appellant

Gwendolyn Hoyt

Appellee

State of Florida

Appellant's Claim

That a Florida law providing that women could serve on juries only at their own request deprived criminal defendants in the state from equal protection of the laws.

Chief Lawyer for Appellant

Herbert B. Ehrmann

Chief Lawyer for Appellee

George R. Georgieff

Justices for the Court

Hugo Lafayette Black, William J. Brennan, Jr., Tom C. Clark, William O. Douglas, Felix Frankfurter, John Marshall Harlan II (writing for the Court), Potter Stewart, Earl Warren, Charles Evans Whittaker

Justices Dissenting

None

Place

Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision

20 November 1961

Decision

The Court upheld the Florida statute, as well as Gwendolyn Hoyt's conviction.

Related Cases

  • Ballard v. United States, 329 U.S. 187 (1946).
  • Taylor v. Louisiana, 419 U.S. 522 (1975).
  • Duren v. Missouri, 439 U.S. 357 (1979).

Sources

Knappman, Edward W., ed. Great American Trials. Detroit, MI: Visible Ink Press, 1994.

Further Readings

  • DiPerna, Paula. Juries on Trial: Faces of American Justice. New York: Dembner Books, 1984.
  • Hans, Valerie P., and Neil Vidmar. Judging the Jury. New York: Plenum Press, 1986.
  • Otten, Laura A. Women's Rights and the Law. Westport, CT: Praeger, 1993.

Additional topics

Law Library - American Law and Legal InformationNotable Trials and Court Cases - 1954 to 1962