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How Does Miller Violate The 8th Amendment

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Alexander Hamilton once said, “[T]he first duty of society is justice.” Justice has been a repeated theme in political history and it is a shame that it may not be served for Miller. Evan Miller and Colby Smith, both 14 and 16 respectively, murdered Cole Cannon in his own home. The two teens attempted to steal cash from Cannon’s wallet while he was sleeping, but during the process, they had awoken him. Cannon grabbed Miller by the throat in response to the two teen thieves, but before anything could happen, Smith grabbed a nearby bat and knocked Cannon out. Miller then proceeded to hit Cannon repeatedly with his fists or the bat. The two teens flee the scene after they beat Cannon. They returned later to set the house ablaze to destroy evidence …show more content…

In Harmelin v. Michigan, Harmelin objects his life without parole sentence, claiming it violates the Eighth Amendment on the grounds of being “cruel and unusual”. The outcome of the case rules the sentencing constitutional, reasoning that just because it may be unusual or uncommon, does not make it a violation. Even though the punishment itself may be cruel in comparison to other punishments, it is not historically unusual or unprecedented. The case itself speaks a great volume about the proportionality of crime to punishment. Considering Harmelin only possessed cocaine as his crime, and received a life sentence without parole, the court ruled in favor of Michigan. This shows that there is no proportional punishment for crimes. If Harmelin gets a life sentence without parole for just possessing an illegal drug, a life sentence without parole for murder fits the outcome of Harmelin v. Michigan. If there was a proportionality rule, by definition and logic, Miller will be sentenced to death or life without parole at the minimum. Any sentence less severe only makes the Harmelin v. Michigan outcome seem pointless, it breaks the logic one would use to justify the Harmelin …show more content…

The argument is often supported with scientific evidence claiming that minors’ brains don’t stop developing until the age of 25. It is then reasoned that minors cannot be held responsible for their actions due to the fact that their brains are still developing. This is completely true, but there is just one big flaw in this reasoning. It is claimed that the brain does not stop developing until the age of 25, but the line for responsibility is drawn at 18. Why is it drawn at 18? Is there a massive difference between the mind of a 17 and 18 year old? If moral and ethical responsibility is tied to age and the development of the brain, why shouldn’t we set the line at 25? Following the logic of developmental and age differences, the punishments should be lowered for those who are under 25. But we know that will not happen, because the age difference and brain development is not a major factor in determining moral responsibility. The major factor is the mental capability that is often determined by psychiatrists where insanity is determined to be a factor. In Miller’s case he confessed to the crime and did not plead insanity, neither was he determined to be insane. This reveals that he had moral knowledge of his wrongdoing during Cannon’s

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462 Words | 2 Pages

Facts: Evan Miller beat and robbed Cole Cannon (his neighbor). He was only fourteen years old when he and his friend Colby Smith committed the offense. On July 15, 2013, Miller and Smith illegal enter Mr. Cannon home looking for narcotics when they did not find any drugs they lifted baseball cards and left. Later on the same day both boys went back to Mr. Cannon home and robbed him while he was sleeping. Mr. Cannon woke up during the robbery and attacked Miller.

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250 Words | 1 Pages

In 2012, the case of Miller v. Alabama was presented in front of the Supreme Court detailing the crimes that took place in 2003 by Evan Miller. In July 2003, Miller, who was only fourteen years old at the time, with companion Colby Smith killed neighbor Cole Cannon by beating him with his own baseball bat and burning down the trailer Mr. Cannon lived in, while he was still inside. In 2004, Miller was to be tried as an adult for his crimes for capital murder. In 2006, he was found guilty and charges with aggravated murder and sentenced to mandatory life imprisonment without any parole.

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1229 Words | 5 Pages

Miller V. Alabama The Facts One July 2003 night, Evan Miller a 14-year-old juvenile at the time; was together with a friend Colby Smith at Miller’s house (Oyez,n.d.). At the time, Miller was expecting a neighbor Cole Cannon to come by to ascertain a drug deal with Miller’s mother (Miller V. Alabama, 2012,p.1004).Miller and Smith then preceded to Cannon ’s trailer to smoke marijuana while playing drinking games (Miller V. Alabama, 2012,p.676, 689). Once Cannon lost consciousness, Miller took the opportunity to steal Cannon’s wallet; successful, he shared the $300 he obtained with Smith (Miller V. Alabama, 2012,p.676,689). Then Miller tried to cover his tracks by replacing Cannon’s wallet (now empty) back into his pocket; while doing so Cannon regained consciousness and seized Miller at the neck and throat (Miller V. Alabama, 2012,p.676,689).

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1404 Words | 6 Pages

It was a case that wasn’t taken lightly and would get Miller “charged as a juvenile, but his case was removed to adult court” (“Miller”) because of how serious the crime committed. What was the motive behind such a horrendous crime, robbery, drugs, and alcohol. Sadly, it wasn’t a crime which the court hasn’t seen before,

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593 Words | 3 Pages

In reviewing the Supreme Court case of Roper v. Simmons 543 U.S. 551 (2005), we review the allegation of the violation of the Eighth Amendment in the trial court’s use of cruel and unusual punishment in its sentencing of Christopher Simmons; who was a juvenile at the time of the crime; to a sentence of death. In reviewing the facts of the case, we find that Christopher Simmons, then 17 and a junior in high school, along with Charles Benjamin and John Tessmer, planned the commission of a burglary with the intent to commit murder under the perception that they were minors and as such would be able to get away with the crimes. Upon his capture, Simmons, admitted to the crimes and provided law enforcement with the details of the crimes. Because of his age and the nature of the crime, Simmons was considered to be

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851 Words | 4 Pages

The issue in this case is whether the imposition of the sentence of death for the crime of murder under the law of Georgia violated the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Gregg argued that the sentencing procedure allows for arbitrary grants of mercy that reflects a misinterpretation and ignores the reviewing authority of the Georgia Supreme Court to determine whether each death sentence is proportional to other sentencing for similar crimes. Gregg was pleading for a life sentence instead of death. Georgia argued that the statute did not constitute a cruel and unusual punishment and did not violate the Eighth and Fourteenth amendments. Georgia also argued and proved that there must be specific jury findings as to the circumstances of the crime to determine whether the death sentence was fair for the case.

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733 Words | 3 Pages

Instead, we have reason to believe that Mr. Mack was actually the one guilty of the murder of Mr. Adams. The strongest piece of evidence in this case that points toward the fact that Mr. Bennet is not guilty of the murder of Mr. Adams is that Mr. Mack was very jealous of Mr. Adams because he had bidded higher and bought the

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813 Words | 4 Pages

In 2012, in Alabama v. Miller, 14-year-old Evan Miller beat up his neighbor and set fire to his trailer. In another case, Roper v. Simmons, Christopher Simmons tied a woman, threw her off a bridge, and watched her drown. So what happened? According to the article "Juveniles, No Parole," the Supreme Court ruled in Miller v. Alabama that it was unconstitutional and a violation of the 8th Amendment to sentence a juvenile to prison, saying that in the second case, the Court banned the death penalty for people 18 and under. In that same story, Justice Elena said it "diminished culpability and heightened the capacity for change.

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1210 Words | 5 Pages

557). To understand this ruling, one must understand exactly why life-without-parole sentences for juveniles are considered to be cruel and unusual punishment. In Jackson’s case, for example, the facts show that Jackson did not kill anyone, did not possess any weapons, and did not take anything from the store, yet he was still convicted of capital felony-murder and aggravated robbery. Jackson, a young boy who was presumably influenced by the older boys, was being held responsible for crimes that he did not actually commit. During sentencing, the circumstances of the case and Jackson’s age could not be taken into consideration; the mandatory sentence was just handed down.

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1445 Words | 6 Pages

The court dismisses the plea quickly because “the justice system ignores psychosocial complexities and histories in favor of black and white definitions of right and wrong” (Myers). The justice system in this time very rarely accepted pleas of insanity or mental illness. Capote wrote that “after an hour’s conversation with the defendants, the doctor rule[d] out that neither man

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129 Words | 1 Pages

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.

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494 Words | 2 Pages

When someone who commits a crime is determined to be mentally inadequate to be held accountable for the crimes they have committed, there are things that we do to charge them, but in a lesser way because of their mental capacity. Which begs the question, why are we allowing children to be sentenced to life, when their brains aren’t fully developed? When a child commits a crime we look over that, and stop seeing them as children. We shouldn’t sentence children to a life in prison when their brains are not only underdeveloped, but also missing a good portion of gray matter.

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670 Words | 3 Pages

However, research has shown that children as young as 14 have the cognitive ability to understand the impact of their behavior and to take responsibility for their actions. Lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 14 would ensure that young people are held accountable for their actions but are also given the support and resources to make positive changes in their lives. ## Accountability Holding young offenders accountable for their actions is important in ensuring that they take responsibility for their behavior and make amends for any harm they have caused. Lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 14 would allow for young offenders to be held accountable for their actions and would encourage them to take responsibility for their behavior.

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815 Words | 4 Pages

“The law may be color-blind as it is written, but not as it is enforced.” Racial bias in the death penalty can be traced back to Furman v. Georgia, where handing down the death penalty sentence, unfairly, constituted as a cruel and unusual punishment, violating the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. The reinstatement of the death penalty with its new sentencing guidelines, implemented by the Supreme Court, was to ensure that the death penalty sentence was used in a constitutional way. Despite these guidelines, somehow, racial bias has found a way to thrive. It has been documented that an individual is more likely to receive the death penalty in a case where the victim is White than in cases where the victim is Black.

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803 Words | 4 Pages

In recent years, it has become more and more apparent that the adolescents of today are unfit for the responsibilities currently available to them. Equipping someone who is unable to fathom the risks of the decisions they make with the power to put themselves and others in danger is far too precarious. For this reason, the age at which adolescents become adults currently established is dangerously low. The age of legal adulthood should be 25, because at this age young adults are truly capable of comprehending the consequences of their actions and are able to handle the responsibilities of adulthood.

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