ipl-logo

Does The Death Penalty Violate The 8th Amendment

405 Words2 Pages

The University of Texas-Pan American

Essay #2

Anna Salkinder

LSPI
July 27, 2015

The death penalty has been a major topic of debate in the United States as well as various parts of the world for numerous years. At this time, there are thirty-one states in which the death penalty is legal. Nineteen states have completely abolished it (“States with and without The Death Penalty”). Since its initial development back in the 1600’s, the death penalty has taken a different course in the way it is utilized. In its early days, the death penalty was greatly used and implemented for several offenses. Generally, the public sought out the stern implementation of the death penalty. But contrary to this, the use of the death penalty, …show more content…

Does the death penalty violate the 8th Amendment? According to the National Constitution Center, the 8th Amendment states “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted” (“Amendment VIII”). There is no objective answer to this, because the courts never clearly stated that the death penalty is cruel and unusual. I do not agree with any part of the death penalty simply because I believe it is cruel in the sense that it strips man of his “right to life” as declared in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The death penalty has been significantly changing according to these six cases: Atkins v. Virginia (2002), Roper v. Simmons (2002), Kennedy v. Louisiana (2008), Graham v. Florida (2010), and Miller v. Alabama (2012). These six cases discuss the “evolving standards of decency”. The “evolving standards of decency” state that the implementation of the death penalty is deemed unconstitutional for certain circumstances, defendants, and crimes. When implementing this test, the courts analyze the most prevalent opinions among the different state legislatures, judges, sentencing juries, and the general public in order to determine whether the use of the death penalty is cruel and unusual. In Atkins v. Virginia (2002), the court ruled that the mentally retarded should not be tried for death penalty because they do not bear the proper guilt that even the worst adult criminal bears upon committing a crime. The mentally retarded have trouble reasoning and controlling their

Show More
Related

David Oshinsky's Capital Punishment On Trial

1434 Words | 6 Pages

Oshinsky did a remarkable job explaining the history of the death penalty in a clear and concise way. While the text was fairly short, he effectively provided his readers with well documented and relevant information on how controversial the death penalty has been throughout the past few centuries. He undertook an exceptionally important issue that many Americans do not know much about, or may have conflicting feelings

Read More

Roper V. Simmons Essay

872 Words | 4 Pages

The most important issue that must be addressed in this case is the principle of the “evolving standards of decency” and the uses of a national consensus. The “evolving standards of decency” were developed by Trop v. Dulles and have been implemented in one way or another in all of the precedents dealing with “cruel and unusual” punishment. It is important to treat these principles as an important aspect of “cruel and unusual” punishment jurisprudence, therefore turning from these set of principles would be foolish and a disregard for every precedent. However, it is important to acknowledge that each case satisfies the standards by using a different method; some use the presence or lack of state legislature as a judgment of consensus while others look at foreign countries.

Read More

Ehrlich Anthony Coker Case

755 Words | 4 Pages

Supreme Court has redefined (along with not defining) the Eighth Amendment and “Cruel and Unusual Punishment”. Moreover, the court has intervened in many cases where the death penalty was applied injustice. The Cruel and unusual punishment doctrine has not been well developed. The Supreme Court’s primary concentration has been on the word “cruel” when determining what punishments are prohibited.

Read More

Lethal Injection: A Constitutional Violation Of The 8th Amendment

832 Words | 4 Pages

The 8th amendment states that “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted”. Justice Samuel and four other justices conclude that the lethal injection does not cause harm and does not violate the 8th amendment according to this article. “ Testimony from both sides supports the District Court’s conclusion that midazolam(medicine) can render a person insensate to pain” says Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. Justice

Read More

Death Penalty Violate The 8th Amendment Essay

700 Words | 3 Pages

It’s Not working out. By:Taija Jones. 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.

Read More

Suspending The Death Penalty: Furman V. Georgia

241 Words | 1 Pages

The court believed that the scheme of chastisement under the ruling was consequently “cruel and unusual” if it was too unembellished for the crime, if it was arbitrary, if it affronted societies sagacity of justice, or if it was not more operative than a less unembellished penalty. Reinstating the Death Penalty

Read More

8th Amendment Importance

1711 Words | 7 Pages

But are we in the future to be prevented from inflicting these punishments because they are cruel? If a more lenient mode of correcting vice and deterring others from the commission of it would be invented, it would be very prudent in the Legislature to adopt it; but until we have some security that this will be done, we ought not to be restrained from making necessary laws by any declaration of this kind’ “ (Bomboy). In other words, Livermore was arguing that all citizens who commit horrible crime do deserve severe punishments for the crimes that they commit, and until the government figures out a way to place restrictions and guidelines on the penalties that we believe are morally proper to give, then they cannot hold back from reprimanding those citizens. Consequently, The Founding Fathers created the Eighth Amendment to be intended for further generations to interpret the meaning of “cruel” and “unusual” over time (Donnell). The amendment was then ratified in 1791 nevertheless, the Eighth Amendment and the death penalty is still highly debated today because the differences in interpretations

Read More

Capital Punishment Dbq

1068 Words | 5 Pages

Capital punishment, or better known as the death penalty, had made its first appearance with the Babylonians through “the Code of Hammurabi”, the first written set of laws and punishments in history. It has since spread worldwide and evolved to fit the customs and traditions of numerous civilizations as time progressed, which explains why some states in America today have implemented some form of Capital Punishment. Used only for the most vile offenses, Capital Punishment may seem appropriate for those who have done the unthinkable. However, it is unclear where we draw the line between whether or not one should be submitted to the death penalty based on the magnitude of the offense. The Supreme Court’s decision in Atkins v. Virginia had helped

Read More

The Death Penalty In Stephen Nathanson's An Eye For An Eye?

901 Words | 4 Pages

Death Penalty is a very ominous punishment to discuss. It is probably the most controversial and feared form of punishment in the United States. Many are unaware, but 31 of the 52 states have the Death penalty passes as an acceptable punishment. In the following essay, I will agree and support Stephen Nathanson's statement that "Equality retributivism cannot justify the death penalty. " In the reading, "An Eye for an Eye?", Nathanson gives objections to why equality retributivism is morally acceptable for the death penalty to be legal.

Read More

Death Penalty In Texas Essay

508 Words | 3 Pages

The death penalty has been a highly debated and controversial issue in many parts of the world, and Texas has been at the forefront of this discussion. Texas has a long and storied history with the death penalty, and it is often seen as a focal point for discussions on its effectiveness, ethical implications, and application. In this essay, we will take an in-depth look at the death penalty in Texas, examining its history, current status, and the various perspectives surrounding it. The history of the death penalty in Texas dates back to the 19th century when it was a part of the state's legal system.

Read More

Annotated Bibliography On Death Penalty

1145 Words | 5 Pages

Annotated Bibliography Draft Student name : Haider Zafaryab Student number: 2360526 Thesis Statement : Capital Punishment is a very controversial topic around the globe. I believe that it does more harm than good and breeds violence in society. Source 1: Radelet, M. L., & Akers, R. L. (1996).

Read More

Death Penalty In Texas Essay

1721 Words | 7 Pages

Texas Death Penalty Controversy Introduction Texas has a long history of using the death penalty as a form of punishment for serious criminal offenses. The state has carried out the most executions of any state in the United States since the reinstatement of the death penalty in 1976, with a total of 570 executions as of September 2021. This paper will examine the history of the death penalty in Texas, the process of imposing and carrying out a death sentence, and the controversies surrounding the use of the death penalty in the state's criminal justice system. History of the Death Penalty in Texas Texas has a long history of using the death penalty as a form of punishment. The state carried out its first execution in 1819 when George Brown

Read More

Florida Death Penalty

1950 Words | 8 Pages

The death penalty is and has been one of the most controversial topics debated in the United States since its birth in the seventeenth century. Dating back to colonial times, the death penalty was influenced by European settlers who brought capital punishment with them to the new world. Similar to today’s laws regarding the death penalty, the laws for capital punishment varied from colony to colony (“Introduction to the Death Penalty”). Slowly, most states in the country have eliminated this cruel practice, however, in some states the death penalty persists. Florida is one of thirty-one states where the death penalty still exists (“States with and without the Death Penalty”).

Read More

Death Penalty Abolished

780 Words | 4 Pages

Served as an important criminal law, the death penalty continued to be used for a long time. It was undoubtedly believed that the death penalty had promoted the human civilization a lot. However, with time going by and the society progressing, the death penalty seemed to be too much cruel. ‘Pressed under weights; boiled to death in oil; burnt with red-hot pincers and then torn limb from limb by horses; hanged, drawn, and quartered; or drowned’, these are what still existed in European countries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (Hood & Hoyle 11). ‘Death by a thousand cuts’ was another cold-blooded sentence to the prisoner in China (Hood & Hoyle p11).

Read More

Argumentative Essay: We Should Support The Death Penalty

1022 Words | 5 Pages

Argumentative Essay The first established death penalty laws go back to the Eighteenth Century B.C. Britain influenced America’s use of the death penalty more than any other country. Committing a crime such as marrying a Jew, treason, or not confessing to a crime that person was penalized with the death sentence. These sentences were carried out by crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impaling the criminal. Hanging criminals became the usual way to carry out this type of sentence, but today the use of lethal injections put the criminals to sleep.

Read More

More about Does The Death Penalty Violate The 8th Amendment

Related Topics

Open Document