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Wilkerson vs. Utah
Wilkerson was arrested for 1st degree murder and sentenced to public execution by firing squad. He tried to appeal and go for a hanging, but the court favored their own decision. This was cruel because even though hanging was the approved method of execution, they still decided to do it with the firing squad. The firing squad doesn't have a 100% death rate, while the noose does. It was also less gruesome because there was almost no blood when using a noose. -
William Kemmler - The First Man Put on The Death Penalty
William Kemmler was a man who was put on trial for the murder of his girlfriend. He was found guilty and sentenced to the electric chair. His death marks the first known death by said electric chair. This is important because this directly opposed the 8th amendment, which a lawyer filed a complaint. They said that it was cruel and and unusual punishment, which it was at the time. -
Robinson v. California
Mr. Robinson was a ordinary citizen living in California, and one day an officer thought he saw injection marks on his arm. He was arrested placed on judgment. He claimed that he was an addict, which the latter denied. He was put in prison for 90-days. This is a clear violation of the 8th amendment because it hinged on the assumption that an illness is equivalent to the offense. -
Powell vs. Texas
Mr. Powell was had been repeatedly convicted of public intoxication. He was arrested and later appealed. The court denied his claim that criminalizing public intoxication was cruel and unusual. It was denied because it was a public indecency, meaning he could have been bothering/ causing harm to others. -
Gregg vs. Georgia
A jury found Gregg guilty of murder and armed robbery and sentenced him to death. Gregg then claimed that this punishment was cruel and unusual. This didn't violate the 8th amendment because he deliberately killed someone. This decision was voted 7-2. -
Harmelin vs. Michigan
Harmelin was arrested and given life in prison for having possession of cocaine. The court ruled that 8th amendment allowed for this to happen. This isn't too correct because the man was just in possession of it, not necessarily selling it or taking it. He could have also appealed for addiction, which the drug is very addictive. -
Atkins vs. Virginia
Atkins was convicted of abduction, armed robbery, and capital murder. A forensic psychologist testified that Atkins was mildly mentally disturbed. The court ordered a second meting on this, but he was still executed. This violated the 8th amendment because the man could have not been doing the things he did out of his own will. Being mentally disturbed, he could do something that he didn't want to do. -
Roper v. Simmons
In the supreme court, the decision to abolish juvenile death penalties were made. It is unconstitutional to impose the death penalty for a crime committed by a child under the age of 18. This is good because now children who have been raised wrong have a second chance at life instead of abruptly ending it. Al children are good, some are raised in worse areas than others. -
City of Columbus vs. Freeman
In 2009, Freeman was arrested with her codefendants and charged with operating a house of prostitution in the city of Columbus. The state asked for a high bail, that bail being a billion dollars, saying she was at high flight risk. This violates the 8th amendment of excessive fines. The crime itself is not too severe and for the bail being something 0.000002% of Americans can't pay is high unreasonable.