William O. Douglas

“ Whatever may be the function and importance of arraignment in other jurisdictions, [4] we have said enough to show that in Alabama it is a critical stage in a criminal proceeding. What happens there may affect the whole trial. Available defenses may be as irretrievably lost, if not then and there asserted, as they are when an accused represented by counsel waives a right for strategic purposes. ”

“ But the same pitfalls or like ones face an accused in Alabama who is arraigned without having counsel at his side. When one pleads to a capital charge without benefit of counsel, we do not stop to determine whether prejudice resulted. ”

“ Rules 10 and 11, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, 18 U.S.C.A. That view has led some States to hold that arraignment is the first step in a trial (at least in case of felonies) at which the accused is entitled to an attorney. People v. Kurant, 331 Ill. 470, 163 N.E. 411. In other States arraignment is not 'a part of the trial' but 'a mere formal preliminary step to an answer or plea.' Ex parte Jeffcoat, 109 Fla. 207, 210, 146 So. 827, 828.
An arraignment normally, however, affords an opportunity of the accused to plead, as a condition precedent to a trial. ”