Carlos Deluna Case Summary

“…if we look to the States, in more than 60% there is effectively no death penalty, in an additional 18% an execution is rare and unusual, and 6% (Texas, Missouri, and Florida) account for all executions” (Justice Breyer, p.86). It is quite curious that, even with the option, few states implement capital punishment. “For the reasons I have set forth in this opinion, I believe it highly likely that the death penalty violates the Eighth Amendment. At the very least, the Court should call for full briefing on the basic question” (Justice Breyer, p.91).

These circumstances included air craft highjacking; treason; murder for hire; murder of a judicial officer, policeman, or fireman in line of duty; and murder by a person with a previous record of violent crime. This decision made it clear that the justices did not consider the death penalty per say to be “cruel and unusual punishment” in the sense intended by the constitution.” (Davis, 196-197). The justices reaffirmed what an unbiased historical and legal analysis would reveal every time that our forefathers were not against Capitol Punishment but against the misapplication of punishment bringing about injustice.

Hannah Patrick, one has only to look at some of the cases such as Coker v. Georgia to feel that the death penalty does not violate the Eight Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. However, the U.S. Supreme Court says it is excessive punishment for the rape of an adult woman and that it violates the Eighth Amendment prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment. In Coker v. Georgia, the defendant raped a woman and stabbed her to death. Eight months later he kidnapped another woman, raped her twice, and abandoned her to die after biting her severely. While he was serving multiple life terms in prison, he escaped and kidnapped, raped, and robbed a third woman at knifepoint (LeSage, 1978). I do not see how you can read about this case and decide as the U.S. Supreme Court did.

Is the death penalty “cruel and unusual” and in violation of the 8th Amendment? We should us it sparely but I do not think it’s cruel and unusual nor is it violating the 8th amendment. We need to make sure the crime fits the punishment. In mid-1993, the Death Penalty Information Center received a request from Rep. Don Edwards, then Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights, to prepare a report on the problem of innocent people on death row. At that time, crime bills were being introduced which involved an expansion of the federal death penalty and a curtailing of the capital appeal process. There also had been a series of highly publicized releases of people from death row in which it had belatedly been discovered

The state of Oklahoma alone has executed 195 people for crimes such as rape, murder and kidnapping. (“Crimes Punishable”) In the Constitution of the United States the eight amendment prohibits “cruel; and unusual punishment” inflicted on those who have been convicted of a crime. A total of 34 states have performed executions on people for various crimes. How do we know what is or isn’t “cruel; and unusual punishment”? Some would say the death penalty is stretching the ways of the law and others would say it is a complete violation of the constitution. The views of people are split evenly. People want others to pay for what they’ve done but may think that the death penalty is a little too extreme. Oklahoma is a very conservative state, and we like to do things the “old way”. With society changing so frequently we rarely match what the others states are doing and we could potentially be seen as a “bad” state. So the decisions such as whether or not to have the death penalty affects all Oklahomans and some aren’t okay with that. In the paragraphs below we will explore all aspects of the death penalty, and by the end we will find out what made the people decide the death penalty was constitutional and what exactly the people’s opinions on this subject are.

The eighth amendment to the United States Constitution states, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted (US Const. amend. IIX.).” The wording of this amendment has raised the question on what constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. This ambiguity of this section constitution has caused the hot debate, whether or not capital punishment is constitutional or not. The use of capital punishment harms the innocent, wastes money, and is unconstitutional.

The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution states, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.” This amendment is most commonly used in context when discussing capital punishment, otherwise known as the death penalty. Many people in today’s society believe that the death penalty is unconstitutional, that it violates the Eighth Amendment because it is considered cruel and unusual punishment. This should not be considered cruel nor unusual because the people receiving the death sentence have committed unspeakable crimes, therefore, punishing them with the death penalty is fair. The death penalty can help prevent the act of lynching.

The eighth Amendment states that the government is prohibited from cruel and unusual punishment. The death penalty is a complete violation of this amendment. Every one, guilty or innocent has the right to live freely, and the government taking away this simplicity of rights, is unconstitutional.

Aside from the eighth amendement, its also questionable if the death penalty disobeys the Declaration of Independence. In the Declaration of Independence it is stated that everyone has the right to " life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." How can they enjoy those three things if they are getting forced to die? The Declaration of Independence was established for every American on this earth, including the imprisoned. So does it make sense to take away those rights of the constitution when it comes to the death penalty? Many would believe

Although the Texas Criminal Justice System gives punishments that are deemed fit to the gravity of the crime, the death penalty is still too harsh of a crime. Prisoners are stripped off their Eighth Amendment rights when they go through the execution, which is an inhumane, cruel and unusual punishment. This can be examined through the methods that the criminal and justice systems and the method of execution.

An Impassioned Debate: An overview of the death penalty in America depicts the facts about the eighth amendment. The eighth amendment is the prohibition on cruel and unusual punishments (Masci 1). There are two significant cases that have inflamed the debate over the capital punishment, The Baze v. Reese case, and the Kennedy v. Louisiana case. The first case reveals the strong debate that the execution by lethal injection is inhuman and in violation of the eight amendment. The second case inflamed the

The Eighth Amendment is intended to protect prisoners before they’re tried and after they’re convicted. It restricts excessive bail, fines, and cruel and unusual punishments. When looking back at laws from early America compared to the laws now, they were dramatically different regarding the death penalty. For example, in the 1600s, the Divine, Moral and Martial Laws, which provided the death penalty for even minor offenses such as stealing grapes, killing chickens, and trading with Indians, was proposed. Now, capital or first degree murder are typically the only offenses that will result in the death penalty as a punishment, where a couple hundred years ago people could get executed for simple, foolish offenses. Additionally, the Roper v.

The eighth amendment is designed to protect us from cruel and unusual punishment. Conservation of the United States Constitution, and all moral ideologies have been set aside. An old form of barbaric punishment and the saying "eye for an eye" is still being widely accepted by Americans today. The old form of barbaric punishment is capital punishment. No matter how "humane" the death penalty has become, it is still the killing of another human being. When people stand outside prisons and cheer that an individual was murdered, there is a problem. When people justify the killing of another person, there

In the United States, 36 states participate in capital punishment in one or more of the five different forms, including lethal injection, electrocution, gas chambers, firing squad, and hanging (“Description of Execution”). After being banned in 1972, several states sought to bring back capital punishment by providing sentence guidelines for both jury and judges when deciding the fit case in which to impose death (“Introduction to the Death Penalty”). These guidelines proved the punishment was constitutional under the Eight Amendment, proving it wasn’t “cruel and unusual” punishment under the correct circumstances. Three procedural reforms were approved by the case Gregg vs. Georgia, including bifurcated trials (separating guilt and penalty phases of trial), automatic appellate reviews of court decisions, and proportionality review to help eliminate sentencing disparities (“Introduction to the Death Penalty”). Ever since these changes in 1976, the death penalty

The death penalty is not only constitutional, it is a necessary part of the American judicial system. In America, the death penalty is issued to those found guilty of a capital offence with aggravating circumstances. These aggravating circumstances can include murder with a kidnapping or murder commited to avoid arrest. This is, to ensure that the death penalty is only dealt to those that truly have committed grave crimes. The Fifth Amendment of the Constitution guarantees that a person will not be, “deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law” (US Const. Amend. V). The Eighth Amendment guarantees that, “cruel and unusual punishments” (US Const. Amend. XIII) will not be inflicted on convicted criminals. The death penalty does not oppose these amendments because of they way they were specifically written.