Taylor v. Kentucky
United States Supreme Court
436 U.S. 478 (1978)
Relevant factsFree
Taylor (defendant) was tried for robbery in Kentucky (plaintiff). During voir dire, the prosecutor read the indictment to the jury. Taylor asked for jury instructions explaining the presumption of innocence and clarifying that the indictment itself was not evidence of guilt, but the trial court denied the request. Taylor was convicted and appealed, arguing the missing instructions violated his Fourteenth Amendment due process rights.
IssueFree
Whether a trial court's refusal to give a requested jury instruction on the presumption of innocence violates a defendant's due process right to a fair trial.