The Constitutional question of cruel and unusual punishment and the Research Paper - 1

The Constitutional question of cruel and unusual punishment and the Death Penalty - Research Paper Example A scrutiny of US Supreme Court cases show that although the Court does not regard the death penalty per se as a form of â€Å"cruel and unusual† punishment, its manner of imposition, the circumstances and the persons upon whom it is imposed may bring the case within the ambit of the 8th Amendment clause. Table of Contents Abstract Table of Contents 1.0 Executive Summary 2.0 Introduction 3.0 Background: Death Penalty 3.1 General History of the Death Penalty 3.2 History of the Death Penalty in the US 4.0 Justifications of the Imposition of the Death Penalty 4.1 Retribution 4.2 Deterrence 4.3 Incapacitation 5.0 The 8th Amendment and the Concept of â€Å"Cruel and Unusual† Punishment 5.1 The Eight Amendment 5.2 US Supreme Court Decisions 5.2.1 Weems v. US 217 US 349 (1910) 5.2.2 Furman v Virginia 408 US 238 (1972) 5.2.3 Gregg v Georgia 428 US 153 (1976) 5.2.4 Coker v Georgia 433 US 548 (1977) 5.2.5 Edmund v Florida 458 US 782, 797 (1982) 5.2.6 Atkins v Virginia 536 US 304 ( 2002) 5.2.7 Roper v Simmons 543 US 551 (2005) 6.0 Discussion: Is the Death Penalty a Cruel and Unusual Punishment? 7.0 Conclusion Annotated Bibliography Executive Summary The question as to whether the death penalty is a ‘cruel and unusual punishment† within the context of the 8th Amendment is often the underpinning issue of many cases appealed to the US Supreme Court by appellants who were convicted and sentenced to death by the trial courts. The clause â€Å"cruel and unusual punishment† first appeared in the 1686 English Bill of Rights and was adopted by the Commonwealth of Virginia Declaration of Rights. Its inclusion in the federal Bill of Rights was proposed by James Madison, who himself hailed from Virginia. Although it was successfully incorporated into the 8th Amendment, its exact meaning was not clearly explained nor its relevance in the American setting fully understood. Under the English law, the clause was meant to limit the English courts from imposi ng punishments that were too barbaric and cruel as was the practice of courts during the reign of the House of Stuart. Punishments such as drawing and quartering, boiling the convicts alive or crushing them with heavy objects were just some of the barbaric punishments that the English Courts in the Stuart era employed. In the American setting, the â€Å"cruel and unusual punishment† clause was not much of an issue prior to the 20th century considering that the barbaric practices of the early English courts were unheard of. The modes of execution in the US include hanging, firing squad, gassing, electric chair and just recently, lethal injection. Although some of these modes of execution are more painful that the others, they are not considered barbaric and cruel punishments. A scrutiny of US case law on the matter reveals that the death penalty is not a â€Å"cruel and unusual punishment† within the 8th Amendment context, and yet, sometimes it is. The Court has declare d that it does not per se infringe upon the 8th Amendment, and yet has also ruled in some cases that its imposition is â€Å"cruel and unusual† punishment. It depends on the circumstances of the case and perhaps, the perspective of the Court at the time a death penalty case is being heard. The first time that the clause was made a ground in an appeal was not a death penalty c

Write and discribe the poem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Write and discribe the poem - Essay Example Like the hands of the child whose mother left him in darkness./ (lines 4-5). Here, I have related the emptiness of ocean with the despair of a child whose mother has left him alone and has departed him. The empty hands of the child mean that he has nothing left to him for hope. He has no hope of life, love, care, and shelter. He is desolate and deserted. Just like him, the ocean is empty and has no hope for any water coming in, which refers to the fact that the world is empty of loving people, and there is no hope for such people for good. The next metaphor that I have used in the poem is comparing a beautiful lady with love. The narrator states that he saw a beautiful dame right at the moment he was feeling thirsty, and to his surprise, she was carrying a pitcher that must contain water for him. She was coming toward him, inviting him to drink from the pitcher. The narrator ran to her, even when his feet were injured, but to his dismay, he was not able to walk fast. Still, he managed to reach her, and was shocked to see that the lady was no more a dame, she was love in disguise, ugly and uninviting. She jumped at him, and ate him up, which has a very deep meaning. The narrator, in fact, had met a beautiful lady, but he was so thirsty that he could not see clearly. This means that he found the love of his dreams, but he was so thirsty of love, that he could not recognize the real, ugly intentions of the woman. He fell in love with her, but when he found out her insincerity and dishonesty, it was too late. She had brok en his heart. The third metaphor is here: /The pitcher was empty, Like the hands of the child whose mother left him in darkness./ (lines 14-15), which means that the woman he had loved had nothing in her heart for him, and was dishonest. She ate him up, means that she broke his heart. The narrator says he is no more, which means that he is totally wrecked, and feels like dying. Hence, I have used metaphors at three different places as