In the case of Patterson v. Kentucky, the Supreme Court of the United States was asked to decide whether a criminal defendant had the right to a jury trial in a state court. The defendant, Patterson, had been convicted of murder in a Kentucky state court without a jury trial. He argued that the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution guaranteed him the right to a jury trial. The Supreme Court held that the Sixth Amendment did not apply to the states, and thus Patterson did not have the right to a jury trial. The Court reasoned that the Sixth Amendment was part of the Bill of Rights, which was intended to limit the power of the federal government, not the states. The Court also noted that the Fourteenth Amendment, which did apply to the states, did not guarantee the right to a jury trial. The Court's decision in Patterson v. Kentucky established that the Sixth Amendment does not apply to the states, and thus criminal defendants in state courts do not have the right to a jury trial. This decision has been cited in numerous subsequent cases involving the rights of criminal defendants in state courts.

Justice Field delivered the dissenting opinion in Patterson v. Kentucky, arguing that the Fourteenth Amendment did not apply to this case because it was a criminal prosecution and not an act of state legislation. He argued that while the amendment prohibits states from denying any person within their jurisdiction equal protection under the law, it does not grant them additional rights or privileges beyond those already provided by common law. Furthermore, he argued that even if there were some violation of constitutional rights in this particular case, it would be up to Congress to provide relief rather than for courts to interfere with state proceedings on such matters. Justice Field concluded his dissent by noting that allowing federal courts to intervene in cases like these could lead to dangerous consequences as they would become "the ultimate arbiters" of all questions involving civil and political rights throughout the country.