Research Paper On The 8th Amendment

The Cruel and Unusual Punishment clause is the most imperative and controversial section of the 8th Amendment. In some ways, the clause is very mysterious. What does it mean for a punishment to be “cruel and unusual”? How do we measure punishment’s cruelty? And if a punishment is cruel, why should we care if it’s “unusual”? The 8th Amendment is stated as simply as this: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fins imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” We do know some things about the history of the phrase “cruel and unusual punishments”. In 169, a full century before the ratification of the United States Constitution, England adopted the Bill of Rights that prohibited “cruell and unusuall punishments”. In 1776, George Mason included a prohibition of cruel and unusual punishments in the Declaration of Rights he drafted for he Commonwealth of Virginia. In 1791, the same prohibition became the central component of the 8th Amendment to the United States Constitution.

These protections weren’t added with until after the Constitution was ratified. The debates that occurred while the states were deciding whether to ratify the Constitution shed some light on the meaning of the Cruel and Unusual Punishments Clause, because they show why many people though this clause was needed. In addition, the 8th Amendment, according to my own words, is this amendment which ensures that the punishments for crimes are not excessive, cruel or unusual. Meant to safeguard Americans against excessive, cruel or unusual. This was meant to safeguard Americans against excessive punishments if its not clear on what cruel and unusual punishment really