Capital Punishment

Question 1

Common Law Trends And The 8th Amendment

Answer 1

1. There was a narrowing for capital punishment being imposed
   
   1. Trend away from imposing capital punishment for most crimes to mostly just murder – usually an aggravated form of murder
   2. Some states in the south continued to use capital punishment for rape and armed robbery
2. Moved from mandatory to discretionary approach
   
   1. Only 3 jurisdictions retained a mandatory death penalty approach
   2. It became so discretionary that there were really no standards at all to guide the jury as to whether they should impose the death sentence
   3. Death penalty lawyers challenged this approach
      
      1. It forces defendants to choose between their rights
      2. It prevents them from introducing evidence
      3. It creates discrimination
3. The 8th Amendment provides: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted”
   
   1. There are two requirements under the 8th Amendment
      
      1. Narrowing
         
         1. The system must narrow the group of people in some way that are subject to the death penalty (ratchet, balancing, or special question)
      2. Lockett rule
         
         1. Must allow the sentencer to hear any mitigating character evidence

Question 2

Pre-Furman Views on 8th Amendment’s Prohibition on Cruel & Unusual Punishment

Answer 2

1. No inherently cruel punishments
   
   1. Examples include boiling in oil or amputating limbs
2. No disproportional punishments
   
   1. Will not allow punishments that are excessive in comparison to the crime they are being charged with
3. No punishments imposed with a malicious intent
   
   1. There can be times where a punishment is administered with a malicious intent, which is prohibited by the cruel and unusual punishment clause

Question 3

Furman v. Georgia

Answer 3

1. None of these three ideas helped the jury determine whether the death penalty was appropriate, so they added a fourth idea
2. Inequality – if the death penalty were applied “equally,” the populace would abolish it
3. Two majority justices thought the death penalty was inherently cruel and unusual punishment, and was therefore always unconstitutional
4. The remaining three majority justices said that without standards, the death penalty violates the 8th Amendment
   
   1. Allows for arbitrary, capricious, and discriminatory punishment
5. The court rejected the death penalty in this case

Question 4

Response to Furman

Answer 4

1. In response to Furman, the state passed two new death penalty statutes
2. Mandatory death penalty statutes
   
   1. The court ultimately threw out these statutes, and kept all three guided-discretion standards
   2. Individualized consideration is required
   3. Guidance or channeling of sentences discretion
   4. Death is different and requires a heightened reliability
3. Guided-discretion statutes
   
   1. Rachet system
      
      1. If you find one of the aggravating factors, the jury must decide whether to impose the death penalty
   2. Balancing System
      
      1. There was a list of aggravating and mitigating factors, and the jury must balance the factors and decide whether to impose the death penalty
   3. Special question system
      
      1. Asks the jury three questions:
         
         1. Did the victim induce or facilitate that offense?
         2. Was the defendant under duress, coercion, or strong provocation?
         3. Was the offense primarily the product of the defendant’s psychosis or mental deficiency?
      2. If the defendant fails to meet any of these three standards, the death penalty is imposed

Question 5

The Lockett Rule (Lockett v. Ohio)

Answer 5

1. Ohio uses the special question system
   
   1. Lockett did not meet any of the three standards and was given the death penalty
2. Lockett’s lawyer complained that there was no individualized consideration
   
   1. The defendant should be entitled to offer any evidence that she wants that bears on her character record or crime
3. Rule: The sentencer should not be precluded from considering as a mitigating factor any aspect of a defendant’s character or record and any of the circumstances of the offense that the defendant proffers as a basis for a sentence less than death
   
   1. The problem is that lawyers aren’t all aware of this law and don’t realize that you can put all of this evidence into the trial
4. Capital punishment laws must include individualized consideration, and narrowing of the group eligible for the death penalty