8th Amendment Essays

  • 8th amendment

    541 Words  | 2 Pages

    I think that executing a minor violates the 8th amendment, “No cruel or unusual punishment.” If a little kid makes a mistake and accidentally shoots a gun or does something that kills someone, and they are executed I think that that falls under cruel and unusual punishment. A court case that made it to the Supreme Court was the case of Kevin Nigel Stanford, who was convicted in 1981 of a murder committed in Kentucky when he was 17 years and 4 months old. Stanford and an accomplice repeatedly raped

  • Importance Of The 8th Amendment

    762 Words  | 2 Pages

    The eighth amendment of the U.S Constitution has been a key part to the justice system from the moment it was created. It provides the basic rights that everyone deserves. The eighth amendment is very important because it guarantees many “freedom from” rights. For example, it protects Americans from cruel and unusual punishments. Without the eighth amendment many people would be punished in an inhumane manner based on the morals of the judge. The eighth amendment is crucial to the U.S Constitution

  • 8th Amendment

    1010 Words  | 3 Pages

    murder a man for his eye. The story creates many suspenseful moments as the murder is told in the first person. So now it’s over, what sentence should the killer get?The eighth amendment states that cruel or unusual punishment shall not be inflicted on citizens of the United States. Based on an interpretation of the 8th amendment as well as mitigating and aggravating evidence, the narrator should be sentenced to death in reason for the following facts; the narrator executed conscious premeditated murder

  • 8th Amendment Essay

    940 Words  | 2 Pages

    the American Revolution. Each amendment to the Constitution came about for a reason-to overrule a Supreme Court decision, to force a societal change, or to revise the details of the Constitution. The last amendment was written on September 25, 1789. It was declared ratified on May 7, 1992. There were originally

  • Capital Punishment Essay - True Justice Through Application of the Death Penalty

    1070 Words  | 3 Pages

    True Justice Through Application of the Death Penalty The death penalty, as administered by states based on their individual laws, is considered capital punishment, the purpose of which is to penalize criminals convicted of murder or other heinous crimes (Fabian).  The death penalty issue has been the focus of much controversy in recent years, even though capital punishment has been a part of our country's history since the beginning.  Crimes in colonial times, such as murder and theft of livestock

  • Essay On 8th Amendment

    832 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Eighth Amendment interpretation has changed over time because of a criminal’s mental health, non-homicidal crimes, and the execution of minors. To emphasize, Justice John Paul Stevens proclaimed that “in a 6 - 3 opinion, the Court held that executions of mentally retarded criminals are ‘cruel and unusual punishments’ prohibited by the Eighth Amendment” (Atkins v. Virginia.). As a result, the United States of America doesn’t execute mentally ill criminals, anymore, because people found out that

  • Pros And Cons Of The 8th Amendment

    1278 Words  | 3 Pages

    unusual punishments inflicted. This amendment is the 8th bill of rights in the constitution of the United States of America. The death penalty is a direct violation of the constitution of the United States, and should be deemed unlawful by the Supreme Court. Although the death penalty shows justice at avenging the death of the innocent, it is not cost effective by being ten times more expensive than a criminal spending life in prison, and it violates the 8th amendment in the Constitution of the United

  • The Death Penalty

    1097 Words  | 3 Pages

    as well as out west, the electric chair and gas chamber, now the lethal injection. And until the present time justice was swift! When our forefathers signed the constitution the death penalty was being used but no mention of it was made in the 8th Amendment as the death penalty being "cruel or unusual punishment", because they did not feel being put to death because you deliberately took anothers life was unusual or cruel but EXPECTED! At this time in 2001 the 32 states that have the death penalty

  • The Death Penalty: A Violation of 8th Amendment

    640 Words  | 2 Pages

    or her in prison for life. The EighthAmendment states that it prevents cruel and unusual punishment, and the death penalty is violating it. The Supreme Court case, McCleskey v. Kemp (1987) violates the Eighth Amendment purpose. Therefore, the death penalty clearly defies the Eighth Amendment and shouldn't be used for people who have convicted murder. It is true that, capital punishment is properly reserved for the worst of the worst. For example, Ted Bundy and terrorists like Oklahoma City bomber

  • 8th Amendment Pros And Cons

    1623 Words  | 4 Pages

    Virginia, a case that dealt with the execution of the mentally disabled.” (Roper v. Simmons) The majority of the American population found the execution of the mentally disabled to be cruel and unusual so the Supreme Court ruled that under the Eighth Amendment, executing the mentally disabled was unconstitutional. Using the reasoning in the Atkins decision, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that the execution of minors was cruel and unusual because American sentiment, the court viewed, had shifted towards

  • 8th Amendment Under Attack Essay

    685 Words  | 2 Pages

    Is the eighth amendment under attack? The eighth amendment states that no person shall be submitted to cruel and unusual punishment. The question is whether or not this right is under attack from those who support the death penalty. When the bill of rights was created it was intended to stop judges from unruly, and unreasonable punishments of people who committed certain crimes. However in the day and age we live in now, the supreme court has placed provisions and rules on the use of the death penalty

  • The Controversy Surrounding the Death Penalty

    1121 Words  | 3 Pages

    Russia became the first important nation to ban the death penalty. The English instilled the death penalty upon America when it was just a colony. Ben Franklin opposed the death penalty as he helped write the Bill of Rights and the well alluded to 8th Amendment. In 1846 Michigan was the first to repeal capital punishment. By 1917, ten states had repealed capital punishment. By the mid 1960s, the death penalty seemed fated for extinction. Only seven executions were conducted in 1965 and only one in 1966

  • The Eighth Amendment

    1153 Words  | 3 Pages

    The 8th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, as well as the setting of excessive bail or the imposition of excessive fines. However, it has also been deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States (according to the Eighth Amendment)to inflict physical damage on students in a school environment for the purpose of discipline in most circumstances. The 8th Amendment stipulates that bail shall not be excessive

  • Social War

    1263 Words  | 3 Pages

    Social War "That's her, that's the new girl. That's Holly Bennett. She is going to be in our group and not theirs," Mandi told us, as Holly shyly made her way over to the teachers desk. Our regular gang was sitting in the middle of 8th grade English. We were all seated in a circle in the back corner of the old, smelly classroom. Our "enemies," as we called them, were seated in the opposite corner. Mandi, Summer, Kristi, Lindsey, Anna and I were all pretty close friends then. It seemed

  • To Pursue Dreams

    877 Words  | 2 Pages

    Education is not deemed terribly important, since even a high school education is of little practical value. My mom dropped out of high school because she was pregnant, and has been a factory seamstress for fifty years. My father dropped out after 8th grade because his own father ran out on his family, leaving him to have to work. He has been a welder in a steel mill my whole life. They expected that my scholastic career would be roughly similar to theirs. My own goals, however, were much higher:

  • Identity in Maya Angelou's Graduation

    1173 Words  | 3 Pages

    after having killed other soldiers. The dramatic change from a stalking killing machine to a “good ol’ drinking buddy” was astonishing. Maya Angelou describes in her essay “Graduation” an abrupt shift in identity that she experienced. During her 8th grade commencement ceremony, she became painfully aware of the prejudice and stereotypes that haunt her race. She also realized the history of this behavior and the obstacles that she faces when she heard the words to the Negro National Anthem “for

  • I Lost the Chance

    573 Words  | 2 Pages

    father decided that he wanted us to live with him. He was very convincing... but never convincing enough to gain a commitment from us. Unfortunately, he refused to let it alone at that. I was, at the time, a sophomore in high school, my brother in 8th grade. Eventually, we cracked. Agreed to move in with him. All was right in his world. Except one thing. We could not bring ourselves to tell my mom. Eventually, though, it happened. A long, late-night discussion ensued with my mom, discussing the

  • Paris 1900 - Grand Palais

    1956 Words  | 4 Pages

    Paris 1900 - Grand Palais The Grand Palais served as one of the main buildings that helped solidify France as the supreme leader in the Arts. Like the Eiffel Tower in 1889, it served as a focus for the Exposition. However, the two structures were very different. The Grand Palais placed much greater emphasis on ornamentation. The famous French writer Paul Morand stated that, "while in 1889 architecture was happily on the threshold of an age of iron and steel, in 1900 it had gone back to styles

  • Paris 1900 - Petit Palais

    1321 Words  | 3 Pages

    Missing Image Paris 1900 - Petit Palais Along with the Grand Palais and the Pont Alexandre III, the Petit Palais served as one of the main focuses of the International Exhibition of 1900 and helped solidify the position of France as artistic world leader. Despite its inferiority in size to the Grand Palais, contemporary critics noted that the Petit Palais is of "equal importance in creating an impression of the artistic success of the Exhibition" (Boyd, 194). From its inception, it was built

  • The Young Offender's Act Debate

    743 Words  | 2 Pages

    legal system? An examination of the reasons it is seen as being ineffective, the need for change, and the suggested amendments and substitutes will provide an accurate picture of the situation from which a conclusion can be drawn. The young offenders act in its current form is nearly optimal. However, there enough reasons for its alteration that a serious consideration of amendments should be considered. There are a number of reasons why the YOA has been seen as ineffective. There is, in the public