Arbitrary and Capricious - The Supreme Court, the Constitution, and the Death Penalty (Hardcover, New)

Justice Marshall once remarked that if people knew what he knew about the death penalty, they would reject it overwhelmingly. Foley elucidates Marshall's claim that fundamental flaws exist in the implementation of the death penalty. He guides us through the history of the Supreme Court's death penalty decisions, revealing a constitutional quagmire the Court must navigate to avoid violating the fundamental tenant of equal justice for all. History amply demonstrates, argues Foley, that capital punishment cannot be fairly and equally implemented, and that it violates the prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment. Nearly 100 influential Supreme Court capital punishment-related cases from 1878-2002 are examined, beginning with Wilkerson v. Utah, which question not the legitimacy of capital punishment, but the methods of execution. Over time, focus shifted from the constitutionality of certain methods to the fairness of who was being sentenced for capital crimes--and why. The watershed 1972 ruling Furman v. Georgia reversed the Court's stand on capital punishment, holding that the arbitrary and capricious imposition of the death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment, and therefore unconstitutional. Furman clarified that any new death penalty legislation must contain sentencing procedures that avoid the arbitrary infliction of a life-ending verdict, which led to the current complex tangle of issues surrounding the death penalty and its constitutional viability.

General

Imprint:	Praeger Publishers Inc
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	June 2003
First published:	June 2003
Authors:	Michael A Foley
Dimensions:	235 x 165 x 32mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover
Pages:	264
Edition:	New
ISBN-13:	978-0-275-97587-6
Categories:	Books > Law > Laws of other jurisdictions & general law > Constitutional & administrative law > General Promotions
LSN:	0-275-97587-8
Barcode:	9780275975876

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!