The U.S. Bill of Rights: Amendment 8

1. The U.S. Bill of Rights: Amendment 8 By: Cynthia Diaz-Ibarra

2. Amendment 8 • In the United States Constitution section Bill of Rights states: • All punishments must be fair • Not cruel • Fines that are extraordinarily large cannot be set • No excessive bails or fines • Amendment as proposed by Congress in 1789 • Ratified to the U.S. Constitution in 1791

3. Essential Questions: • What are cases in which the 8th amendment plays a role? • What do the courts take into consideration before fixing the amount of bail? • Why does death penalty violate the 8th amendment?

4. What are cases in which the 8th amendment plays a role? • The Eighth Amendment of the Constitution states: • “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” • The amendment is meant to protect Americans against excessive punishments

5. What do the courts take into consideration before fixing the amount of bail? • Judges ordinarily set a bail amount at a suspect’s first court appearance after an arrest • Either a bail hearing or an arraignment • Judges normally follow standard practices • Example, setting bail to amount of $400 for something nonviolent petty and minor • Judges can raise or lower the standard bail, or waive bail altogether • Grant release on the defendant's "own recognizance" • Based on the circumstances of an individual case • Amount of bail usually depends on: • Defendant’s past criminal record • If defendant is employed • If defendant has close ties to relatives & community

6. Example of bail: • Elena Gilbert is arrested for assault and battery after she gets into a fight at a nightclub. • Elena Gilbert has no criminal history • She just drank too much at a friend’s party & got into an altercation with another woman in which they exchanged punches • At the bail hearing, the judge considers that Elena has worked as an accountant at the same local company for six years, and that she is married, with 3 young children • The judge sets her bail amount at $1,500 • Katherine, the woman with whom Elena fought at the nightclub • Has several convictions • Petty theft, assault and battery, and drunk in public, in three different states • Katherine had a warrant for failure to appear at a previously scheduled court hearing on another case • The judge sets Katherine’s bail at $10,600, to ensure she either remains in jail until her hearing, or has sufficient financial incentive to show up

7. Why does death penalty violate the 8th amendment? • The Supreme Court has ruled that the death penalty is not a per se-violation of the Eighth Amendment's • It doesn’t violate but it is cruel and unusual • Not a common everyday punishment • California has stopped executing because the injection isn't working • People have suffered while getting executed • It’s said a person must have a painless death not a cruel or unusual one • Juveniles cannot be executed in death penalty

8. Real life example of death penalty: • Roper v. Simmons, US Supreme Court, 543 U.S. 551 Mar. 1, 2005 • Christopher Simmons' death sentence in favor of life imprisonment without eligibility for release • At age 17, Simmons planned and committed a capital murder • After he had turned 18, he was sentenced to death • Simmons succeeded in a new petition for state post-conviction relief • Argued that US Constitution prohibits the execution of a juvenile who was under 18 when he committed his crime • The Supreme Court held in favor of Simmons that the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments forbid imposition of the death penalty on offenders who were under the age of 18 when their crimes were committed

9. Real life example of unusual punishment • Here are some punishments that courts have found cruel and unusual: • Execution of mentally insane • 56-year term for forging checks totaling less than $500 • Handcuffing a prisoner to a horizontal bar exposed to the sun for several hours • A life-without-parole sentence for a juvenile who has not committed homicide • Punishments that have been found not unconstitutional include: • Felony punishment for petty theft for a defendant with a prior felony • Automatic probation ineligibility for sale or possession for sale of heroin • Criminal prosecution of a homeless, chronic alcoholic for public intoxication • A life-without-parole sentence for aggravated kidnapping for ransom where the victim suffers physical injury

10. Controversial issues today • The United States Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba • Central prison for suspects considered unlawful enemies • Place where "mortal enemies of the US" are locked up with maximum security • Prison is greatly challenged by detainees • Subjects to sleep deprivation, shackling in stressful positions, and prolonged exposures to cold temperatures • Violates 8th amendment • Confrontations of the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay and human rights activists • US Supreme Court sent a series of rulings that blocked administration's efforts to try prisoners at the base • It can be concluded that the "torture" mentioned by the suspects of the prison has indeed been ruled "unconstitutional" by the Supreme Court • Sign executive orders that requires the CIA to close Guantanamo Bay

11. Personal Opinions • Death penalty (capital punishment) is a legal process where the court orders someone to death as a punishment for crime • I don’t think it’s necessary • If the convict is killed, then there is no point to the penalty • "Capital punishment is the only time we punish the person in kind for a crime. We don't rape the rapist or rob the robber, but we kill the killer." -Sister Camille D'Arienzo • Death is not a proper punishment, and should be ruled unconstitutional

12. Work Cited Benz, Stephen. “What Is the 8th Amendment? - Definition, Summary & Cases.” Study.com, Study.com, www.study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-the-8th-amendment-definition-summary-cases.html. Berman, Sara J. “How Judges Set Bail.” Www.nolo.com, www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/how-bail-set.html. “Current Controversies.” The 8th Amendment, www.th8thamendment.weebly.com/current-controversies.html. “Major Death Penalty Cases in the US Supreme Court - Death Penalty - ProCon.org.” ProConorg Headlines, www.deathpenalty.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=001769. Schwartzbach, Attorney Micah. “The Meaning of ‘Cruel and Unusual Punishment.’” Www.nolo.com, www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/the-meaning-cruel-unusual-punishment.html. Staff, LII. “Death Penalty.” LII / Legal Information Institute, 6 Aug. 2007, www.law.cornell.edu/wex/death_penalty.