ipl-logo

Roper Vs Simmons Essay

470 Words2 Pages

In the case of Roper v. Simmons, Christopher Simmons, a 17-year-old, was sentenced to death for murder. Before the crime was committed, Simmons shared his plan of wanting to murder someone by breaking into a home, tying up a victim and throwing them off the bridge. Later on, Christopher Simmons and Charles Benjamin, broke into the home of Mrs. Crook, while her husband was not there. Upon entering the house, Simmons and Benjamin used duct tape to cover the eyes and mouth of the victim and tied her hands together. As time progressed, both Simmons and Benjamin, transported her in a minivan to a railroad trestle, which is where they threw Mrs. Crook off the bridge to her death. When Simmons was taken in for the crime, he was assessed by a clinical …show more content…

Virginia, a petition was filed with the Missouri Supreme Court for post-conviction relief arguing that the reasoning in the Atkins case recognized that the Constitution prevented the implementation of a minor when the crime was committed. The Missouri Supreme Court agreed with Simmons under the notions made in Stanford v. Kentucky in 1989. In the case of Stanford v. Kentucky, a national consensus developed against the implementation of capital punishment on juvenile criminals. With this case the Supreme Court sanctioned the death penalty on offenders who were sixteen years old or younger at the time of the crime. In turn, “eighteen states now bar such executions for juveniles and twelve other states bar executions altogether" (Stanford v. Kentucky,1989). Then, " no state has lowered its age of execution below 18 since Stanford, five states have legislatively or by case law raised or established the minimum age at 18" (Stanford v. Kentucky,1989). Finally, "the imposition of the juvenile death penalty has become truly unusual over the last decade.” (Stanford v. Kentucky, 1989). For this reason, the national consensus criticisms against juvenile executions were made parallel to that of the mentally

Show More
Related
469 Words | 2 Pages

Stanford V. Kentucky The juvenile justice system has had many famous court cases, such as Kent V. United States, Breed V. Jones, Eddings V. Oklahoma and many more. There comes times when the supreme court comes across very difficult decisions. The one court case that stands out from the rest is Stanford V. Kentucky. This court case was brought to light around June,1989, and the end result was the minimum age for the death penalty was set at 16 years old.

Read More
490 Words | 2 Pages

The prosecutor called Simmons’s age a “mitigating factor” in his

Read More
576 Words | 3 Pages

This held as in the case of Stanford it was stated that “capital sentences for 16- and 17-year-olds establishe[d] a societal consensus that such sentences are

Read More
383 Words | 2 Pages

A comparison study of two murders in the state of Ms which are Jones v. State of Mississippi (2009) and Parker v. State of Mississippi (2011) and both of these cases have a lot in common. Brett Jones and Lester Parker are currently in jail for a heinous crime. Not only were they 15 years old juveniles doing the time but they both their grandfathers several times for different reasons and because of that they were charged with first and second degree murder and was sentenced to life without parole. Brett Jones Jr. v. State of Mississippi (2009) Brett Jones stabbed his 68 year old grandfather to death and was sentenced to life without parole but because he was a juvenile at the time he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole because his 8th amendment was violated.

Read More
375 Words | 2 Pages

In a new 2012 case, Miller v. Alabama, the U.S. Supreme Court determined that mandatory sentencing of minors convicted of homicide to

Read More
497 Words | 2 Pages

During the sentencing phase, the judge advised the jurors that they can consider his age when determining his punishment. The defense counsel argued that Simmons’ age should make an immense difference to the jurors in deciding just exactly what his punishment should be (Cornell University, n.d.). The jury ultimately recommended that Simmons be sentenced to death, and the presiding judge imposed their recommendation. Upon appeals all the way up to the Missouri Supreme Court, the Court affirmed the lower court’s decision and denied his

Read More
872 Words | 4 Pages

In Roper v. Simmons there are two issues that must be addressed, the first being the issue of moral maturity and culpability. The defense in the trial phase of this case argued that Mr. Simmons was an at an age where he was not responsible enough to fully understand the effects and consequences of his actions. The majority draws on Atkins v. Virginia to argue that this specific precedent supports their case that the death penalty should not be imposed on the mentally immature or impaired. However, an important point to be made is that the Atkins v. Virginia decision is geared towards the clinical definition of mental retardation: significant limitations that limit adaptive skills. Also, another important question to consider is the competency and premeditation of Mr. Simmons’ crime in this case.

Read More
1175 Words | 5 Pages

The investigation began with the Court looking for a national consensus against the juvenile death penalty by examining the actions of sentencing juries and state legislation. According to the Court’s calculations, thirty states opposed to the death penalty for juveniles equaled the number of states in Atkins opposed to the death penalty for mentally retarded offenders - a number deemed adequate to show a national consensus against the practice (Leavitt). Justice Kennedy moved on to engage in proportionality analysis and argued that capital punishment must be limited to individuals who commit, “...a narrow category of the most serious of crimes,” and are thus, “...the most deserving of execution” (543 US 551, at 568). Lastly, the analysis led Kennedy to note that America was one of the few countries that allowed capital punishment for offenders under eighteen and, “...acknowledged the overwhelming weight of international opinion against the juvenile death penalty” (543 US 551, at 571). The Court’s findings ended in a ruling in favor of Simmons and upholding the unconstitutionality of the juvenile death

Read More
837 Words | 4 Pages

According to Missouri Supreme Court in 2002, the Supreme Court ruling in Atkins v. Virginia (2002) turned the death penalty for the mentally retarded and Missouri Supreme Court reconsidered Simmons' case. The Missouri Supreme Court concluded that, "a national consensus has developed against the execution of juvenile offenders" and sentenced Simmons to life imprisonment without parole. (Atkins v. Virginia, 2002) The State of Missouri appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Read More
435 Words | 2 Pages

Supreme Court, Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551 (2005), stated that under the Eighth Amendment, the rejection of the requirement of the death penalty on juvenile offenders under 18 is required. Capital punishment should be limited to offenders that commit the most heinous crimes making them deserving of execution. Three general differences between juveniles under 18 and adults demonstrate that juvenile offenders cannot with reliability be classified among the worst offenders; Juveniles’ susceptibility to immature and irresponsible behavior means, their irresponsible behavior is not as morally inexcusable as an adult and in the case of Thompson v. Oklahoma, 487 U. S. 815, 835. A juvenile’s vulnerability and the relative absence of control over their immediate surroundings mean juveniles have a better claim than adults do, to be forgiven for the lack of ability to escape the negative influences of their environment. Should a juvenile commits a heinous crime, the State can take away some of the most basic freedoms, but the State cannot take his life and his opportunity to gain maturity and understanding of his own

Read More
1427 Words | 6 Pages

The Missouri Supreme court decided to relook Simmons’s case and appeal to the death penalty sentence. In Roper v. Simmons the basis of the U.S. Supreme court’s opinion was held that it is brutal and disproportion to impose capital punishment for crimes committed while under the age of 18 years old. The decision was on the basis that the Eight and Fourteen Amendments forbids the death penalty on a person who was 15 years of age or younger than 18 years old when they committed their crime. The Court considered that sentencing juveniles under the age of 18 years old to death penalty was ‘cruel and unusual’ punishment therefore the Eight and Fourteen Amendment should be abolished when it comes to putting juveniles under capital punishment. According to The Heritage Guide to The Constitution (2017) states, “excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted” (Forte, D.F., 2017).

Read More
128 Words | 1 Pages

For the past years there has been a debate on whether juveniles should be tried as life without parole or life with parole. In my opinion juveniles who commit first or second degree murder should not receive a mandatory sentence to life without parole. Although the juveniles are underage they are well informed of what’s right and what’s wrong, but some of them have difficulty understanding of what they are doing at the moment of the crime because they are angry and act before thinking clearly. I agree with the majority of supreme court justices who believe that mandatory life sentences are unconstitutional, unfair and inhumane because juveniles are immature, their brain is not completely developed, and they are unaware of long term impact

Read More
1669 Words | 7 Pages

The Supreme Court directly stated that, “We therefore hold that mandatory life without parole for those under the age of 18 at the time of their crimes violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on “cruel and unusual punishments” (Miller v Alabama). Miller v Alabama is a landmark case in the juvenile justice system. It is a landmark case because it helps establish that juveniles cannot be sentenced to life in prison without the opportunity of parole, regardless of the crime they committed (Miller v Alabama). With cases like Miller v Alabama and Graham v Florida, the Supreme Court is emphasizing that juveniles have the time and capacity to change and develop their

Read More
1528 Words | 7 Pages

Crimes are happening around us whether we pay attention to them or not. Those crimes as dangerous as murder are committed by all ages but should younger criminal in their juvenile age received the same punishment as older criminals. On June 25, 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that juveniles committed murder could not be sentenced to life in prison because it violates the Eighth Amendment.(On-Demand Writing Assignment Juvenile Justice) Advocates on the concurring side believes that mandatory life in prison is wrong and should be abolish. However, the dissenting side believe that keeping the there should be a life in prison punishment for juvenile who commit heinous crime regardless of their age.

Read More
582 Words | 3 Pages

In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that it is immoral to give juveniles life sentences, even if they commit a crime as serious as murder, because it is a cruel and unusual punishment. This has been an issue in America as teenagers are often treated as adults in court due to a belief that their crimes warrant a harsh punishment. Many believe that these kids should not be given such major sentences because they are still immature and do not have the self control that adults do. I agree that juveniles do not deserve life sentences because they put less thought and planning into these crimes and they often are less malicious than adults. The article “Startling Finds on Teenage Brains” explains that the teenagers lose brain tissue that is responsible for self control and impulses (Thompson 7).

Read More

More about Roper Vs Simmons Essay

Related Topics

Open Document