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Unfair Death Penalty

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Recommended: Death penalty violates 8th amendment

The death penalty is a cruel punishment meant for monstrous criminals, but what if that criminal had an illness that they were not responsible for. First, the Eighth Amendment forbids the execution of mentally retarded and juveniles, but states nothing about the mentally ill (Benza). Next, the execution of the mentally ill serves no justice for either of the families involved. Also, through the years there have been several mentally ill inmates that have been executed, and showed signs of severe mental illness years before their crime (Greenhouse). Therefore, mentally ill inmates should not receive the death penalty, because the affects of the illness are uncontrollable and the death penalty brings no fairness to either of the families involved …show more content…

Next, the legal system uses the “awareness test” to decide whether or not an inmate is mentally ill. It includes determining if the inmate understand why they are being persecuted, did the inmate have criminal intent, and if the inmate was able to control their behavior. Although many opponents believe the “awareness test” to be “subjected, biased, and even ludicrous.” Also, the severity of the mental illness, like schizophrenia, can alter the inmate’s brain and cause hallucinations that may lead them to commit the crime (Greenhouse). In summary, the legal system’s “awareness test” involves important questions to determine the presence of mental illness in the …show more content…

Frist, like Panetti he also had a history of schizophrenia and other mental disorders before his committed crime. In addition to being mentally ill before his case he believed he was Jesus Christ, and also that he was being executed because people hated Jesus (Swig). In the same way Panetti believed he was executed for preaching the Gospel, Provenzo believed he was executed for being Jesus Christ, which violates the “awareness test”. Although Provenzo’s lawyers requested more time before his execution for him to be evaluated, it was not granted. As a result, Thomas Provenzo was executed on June 21, 2000 by the state of Florida (Swig). In summary, the cases of Panetti and Provenzo prove that the execution of mentally ill inmates is savage and inhumane, because they had no means of treatment and showed signs years before their

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The Supreme Court tested again the procedure and criterion of competency for execution of a mental illness defendant in 2007 in Panetti v. Quarterman (Panetti I). The Supreme Court ruled in Panetti that to be executed an inmate must not only be aware of the reason for his execution, the inmate must have a rational comprehension of the State’s reasoning for his

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Throughout In Cold Blood, a true-crime novel based on a multiple murder, author Truman Capote gives a more personal insight on the topic while standing up for the mentally ill and verbalizing his personal beliefs on how the they should be treated and viewed in the criminal justice system. Within In Cold Blood, Capote tells about the events leading up to the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers. During the trial, both of the criminals were declared mentally ill, but were still authorized to stand trial and execution as they had been proven to have the ability to decide between right and wrong, and therefore were considered mentally

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Texas holds the title for the state with most executions in the United States gaining heavy scrutiny for the use of death penalty. Many are concerned that the death penalty is in direct violation of the 8th amendment of the constitution which forbids the act of cruel and unusual punishment as well as being wrong on a moral level. This becomes a hot button issue when mental illness comes into play as 30% of Texas's incarcerated inmates, have been clients of the state’s mental health system (“Texas Death Penalty”). Andre Lee Thomas is one of those inmates, sentenced to death, but also deemed mentally unstable.

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In his memoir Just Mercy, Bryan Stevenson recounts the stories of many defendants whose mental illness was ignored during their trial. Whether they were intellectually disabled or were going through major trauma, all of the clients were seriously impacted. Logically, a major detail like the defendant's mental state should have been discussed and considered when issuing a punishment. Evidence of their mental illness was overlooked, however, leading to guilty verdicts and, in some cases, executions. Regardless of the individual cases, avoiding the topic of mental health shows a complete failure to understand how it can severely impact an individual.

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Lizbeth George English 8-2 The Wrongfully Imprisoned Holy Angels Middle School April 17, 2024 The Wrongfully Imprisoned A big issue I’m noticing in the novel Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson is that mass incarceration occurs not only due to misguided drug policy or excessive sentencing but also due to the number of people who are declared as poor or mentally ill and are just thrown into jail as their next resort instead of sending them to therapy to guide them. Furthermore, sometimes prisons are used as a substitute for therapy when someone has what is deemed as a mental illness. Consequently, prisoners often come out with their mental health worsened, creating more chances of that prisoner going back to jail again.

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According to Smith, the recognition of mental illnesses have forced the courts to question legal culpability (6). For example, the 1724 case Rex v. Arnold introduced the principle of “proof of insanity as an exemption from intent” (Smith 6). This led to the adoption of the “Durham Criterion,” in which the courts find that the defendant is not legally responsible if they are proven to have “substantial incapacity to conform to the law” (Smith 13). If we compare the legal history of mental illness to Szasz’s claims that mental illness is a myth, the legal treatment of psychopathy can be shown as another form of toleration. Szasz states that the myth of mental illness functions to create a “social intercourse [that] would be harmonious, satisfying, and the secure basis of a good life” (96).

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The Eighth Amendment states that “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and excessive punishments inflicted”, which overall serves to protect the rights of criminals (source #5). The idea behind the phrase “Cruel and unusual” allows the interpretation of the Eighth Amendment to be significantly more flexible compared to other Amendments to meet the requirements of changing times. Therefore, as time progresses, society reforms its standard of decency, which generally leads to disparities between the views and treatments of offenders from different time periods (Source #4). This principle is prominent when comparing Penry v Lynaugh and Atkins v Virginia. Although both cases deal with mentally disabled offenders who were both charged with murder, the fact that the number of states that banned the execution of disabled offenders had increased from 2 to 18 between the 13 years between the time of these cases, shows the evolution in public opinion, or more specifically, the shift from disregarding a mental state of an offender, to sympathising with how they are not able to feel or understand certain ideas and feelings (Source #3).

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Overall, the author’s credentials and content of his article create a credible source about the effectiveness of the death penalty. I will use his article because of its valuable evidence on the psychological impacts of the death penalty. The evidence that this author provides will be allow me to consider all the impacts of the death penalty and whether or not it is still an effective punishment. Similarly, the other sources that I have will be corroborated

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