Keith Gayle v. Eugene Lefevre, Superintendent, Clinton Correctional Facility

With all respect I must dissent.

It seems to me this defendant’s claim that he had been denied his right to a “fair trial” must be treated as equivalent to a claim that he had been denied due process of law. Certainly, the “original understanding” of “due process of law” embodies nothing if it does not embody the right to a fair trial. See, e. g., L. Levy, Origins of the Fifth Amendment 164-70 (1968) (discussing the trial of John Udall in 1590).

More importantly, the New York courts themselves, regardless of what once may have been the case, now treat or should treat, a claim of denial of fair…