8th Amendment Capital Punishment

Passed on September 25, 1789 and ratified on December 15, 1791 by Congress, the eighth amendment has been present in the United States for quite some time. Over time, the amendment has morphed and interpreted differently. In the Constitution it states, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted”. In the 1990s, individuals referenced the eighth amendment when discussing capital punishment or the death penalty. Death sentences were most frequent during the 1900s, resulting in some individuals declaring that it went against the amendment (Source A). Since then, opinions on the death penalty have fluctuated, some claim that is barbarous while others deem it to be necessary. The

The 8th amendment says “Excessive bail shall not be required, Nor excessive fines imposed, Nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted” . With that being said if the 8th amendment applies for cruel punishments of death penalties then why is it still happening. There might be improstion to taking the 8th amendment out of the factor of basically killing someone for breaking the law. Yeah they might have broken the law but killing A person so brutally doesn’t seem fair. If the death penalty never existed then how much different would america even be? In supreme court they stated “The death penalty law isn’t violating the 8th amendment it is somewhat brought into decision “ . My only question is how does the death penalty not violate the 8th amendment?

The Eight Amendment Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel, and unusual punishments inflicted. Previously the Eight Amendment was formed very differently from what we know today. The death penalty has been one of the most discussed topics since it first became a part of society. It is a constant disagreement to prove or challenge whether or not the death penalty is a cruel and unusual punishment which would then now go against the eighth amendment. The death penalty is a suitable sentence, while going through the history, and different methods. Capital Punishment helps deterrence rates, and cost options for the future, and if the death penalty is inhumane, there will no longer be doubt on whether it is

It’s a late Autumn afternoon and a young fourteen year old boy is told that he has to pay $24,000 bail for stealing a bag of groceries. This is an unreasonable price to pay for the crime he committed. Luckily for us, the Eighth Amendment protects US citizens from unfair situations such as this one. The Eighth Amendment’s meaning and purpose has left an enduring impact on the citizens of the United States of America.

Although the methods of execution in Texas have evolved throughout time to more humane techniques, an increase in the cost of living of prisoners and the time between conviction and execution has resulted. By shortening the appeals the process, the overall funding and labor to house death row inmates will be decreased and a the possibility of an 8th Amendment violation by keeping prisoners on death row for years and years will be diminished.

Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that the execution of criminals with intellectual disability was excessive and therefore prohibited by the Eighth Amendment as cruel and unusual punishment. Although the Court stated that, “Those ‘mentally retarded’ persons who meet the law’s requirements for criminal responsibility should be tried and punished when they commit crimes”, imposing a death sentence on them is excessive. The decision overturned the Supreme Court of Virginia’s 1989 decision in Penry. Whereas the Supreme Court of Virginia relied upon Penry, in Atkins, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized that times have changed since the Penry decision was handed down. The U.S. Supreme Court argued that execution of an individual with an intellectual disability is inconsistent with the “evolving standards of decency test that marks the progress of a maturing society.” The Court held that there was a “national consensus” forbidding execution of the intellectually disabled from the fact that 18 states of the 38 states that permit capital punishment had recently enacted legislation barring execution of the intellectually disabled. The U.S. Supreme Court in Atkins observed that the execution of intellectually disabled criminals in the states that permitted it was no longer common and noted that the practice of such executions “has become truly unusual” and that a “national consensus” against it was emerging. This was evident in the public reaction and national attention

The 1984 Insanity Defense Reform Act was passed by Congress after an infamous trial that shocked the United States. United States v. Hinckley was notorious because it was one of the rare cases where the insanity defense worked and the defendant was found not guilty by reason of insanity. The result of this case caused a huge public outcry against the insanity defense. Debate began to form over how to amend the insanity defense. This paper will critically analyze three scholarly journals. Each journal addresses aspects of United States v. Hinckley and the Insanity Defense Reform Act that would follow. The three journal articles that will be reviewed are: The Insanity Defense Reform Act of 1984: Much Ado About Nothing by Norman Finkel, Bringing

Is each person defined by the worst thing that they have done? Can we as a society approve of hunting down and attacking the most vulnerable of people due to their vulnerability? Is it acceptable for the law to determine who deserves to die and who doesn’t? “Just Mercy” prompts its readers to explore these questions and many more. In this book,  Bryan Stevenson, lawyer, social activist, and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, documents his time as a young lawyer in Montgomery, Alabama working to save death row prisoners and those wrongfully accused and incarcerated.

In this case, Daryl Renard Atkins is accused of the kidnapping, robbery, and murder of Eric Michael Nesbitt. Atkins was also charged with use of a firearm while committing each of these offenses ("FindLaw's United States Supreme Court case and opinions.”, 2017).

In the case of Moore v. Texas, “the Supreme Court will face the question of whether it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment to use outdated medical standards in assessing intellectual disabilities to determine whether an individual may be executed.” This really stood out to me, to think that he committed the act of a murder in 1980, when he took the life of a grocery store clerk and they are questioning if he should face the consequences that he was given. In my opinion if you chose to take the life of any individual you must pay for your actions, I feel that many people use “intellectual disability” as a way to avoid being put to death. I do agree many people have mental sickness such as “schizophrenia, bipolar disorders etc” but if you

They argued that no intellectually disabled person should be executed under the basis of the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution (APA, 1989). They argued that the disabilities related to intellectual disability are directly correlated to a criminal responsibility and the punishment for the criminal activity. They stated that if a person is intellectually disabled they are unable to not only understand their actions, but control their actions because they do not have the cognitive or behavior development that should have occurred during their development (APA, 1989). People with intellectual disabilities have a reduced ability to cope and function in the world because they have severe impairments in judgment making, logical reasoning, strategic thinking, and control of their impulsivity. This relates to the level of their ability to conform to the law’s requirements and to the degree of the defendant’s blame which is an integral part of the insanity defense. The APA also argued that people who are intellectually disabled do not have the level of guilt needed to fulfill the Eighth Amendment’ Cruel and Unusual Punishment clause appropriately and therefore, it should be unconstitutional in those cases. The level of guilt and moral culpability are the key factors in determining death penalty for a person (APA, 1989). It also

In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court in Atkins v. Virginia stated that it was unconstitutional to execute defendants with “mental retardation.” However, legal questions surrounding this issue remain unresolved. The Court in Atkins left the definition and method of determining intellectual disability up to individual states. It has been said that 46 known “mentally retarded” persons have been executed since 1976. Of these 46, two occurred after Atkins v. Virginia was decided. Controversy exists because Atkins v. Virginia did not provide a definition of intellectually disabled. Although most states use some variation of the definition provided by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD), there is still a lack

The idea of someone being so mentally ill that he or she is unable of comprehending his or her actions and should not be held accountable for them has been a long-standing doctrine in the justice system. Since it was established in 1843, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the subject. While many people think that the insanity defense is just a ‘Get Out Of Jail Free’ card, however, I think that the insanity defense not only assists the mentally ill , but also benefits everyone else as well. Firstly, having the insanity defense administers help to those in need of it. Secondly, the mentally ill may not be suitable for rough prison life. And lastly, the mentally ill should not be held accountable for committing something they were

Today My partner and I will be talking about if solitary confinement is cruel and unusual punishment. I am the opposition on this subject so we think that it is not a cruel and unusual punishment.

The process of punishing criminals, who commit crimes against the law, has occurred for centuries. Capital punishment also known as the death penalty is the highest form of punishment the legal system in the United States, can present. The method of Capital punishment in the United States has been in effect for most of the country 's history, without much controversy. However, in today’s society the controversy of whether or not this process is sufficient continues today. Many people throughout America argue this form of punishment to be a hypocritical process, performed by a nation that claims to have liberty and justice for all. The death penalty by numerous people is considered as an insufficient method of punishing criminals. Even though,