Court+Cases(8-2)

=__Amendment 8(2)__ = = = =__Court Cases__ =

//Hunson v. McMillian // A Louisiana inmate, had said that that he was beaten by two prison guards. He had sued the two guards. He had argued that they had not given his right to the 8th amendment (Which is the right to be free from any cruel and unusual punishment). The court had ruled that the two guards had used force when not needed, violating the 8th amendment. The inmate was then entitled to the damages.

//Helling v. Mckinney // Mckinney is a Nevada state prisoner. He had sued his warden for violating his 8th amendment rights. He had shared a cell with another prisoner that had been smoking a lot during the day. Mckinney had sued because he says that his health is being harmed. The court had ruled that Mckinney did not have amendment right and that unless he could prove that the smoke was really harming his health the case could not go forward.

//Graham v. Florida (2010) //  Petitioner Graham committed armed burglary, among other crimes, at the age of 16. He pleaded guilty and was put on probation. He was later found to have committed additional crimes, violating his probation. The Florida Trial Court sentenced Graham to life in prison without parole, for violating his probation, and the armed burglary, which is a felony. Graham appealed to the State First District Court, saying that his sentence violated his 8th Amendment rights. The Court upheld the previous courts decision on the case. When Graham eventually appealed to the Supreme Court, they agreed with Graham. They declared that juveniles can not be given life in prison without parole for a crime that doesn’t include homicide. They said that since Graham was still a minor at the time he committed his crime, he could not be given life in prison without parole.

//Coker v. Georgia (1977) // Erlich Coker was found guilty of rape, among other charges, and sentenced to death. Other major offenses, including armed robbery, lead to his sentence. When he appealed to the Supreme Court, they ruled that he did not deserve the death penalty. The Court said that because rape by definition does not involve murder of serious physical harm to the victim, Coker did not deserve the death penalty. The Court said that those convicted of rape cannot be sentenced to death, unless their crime caused the death of the victim. Coker’s death sentence was replaced by multiple life sentences.

//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-size: 14.6667px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Roper v. Simmons // <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14.6667px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">In 1993, Christopher Simmons who was 17 at the time of the crime, planned to break into Shirley Cook’s house, tie her up and throw her off a bridge to murder her. Simmons was found guilty, but not tried to the death penalty because he was under the age of 18 and that would go against the 8th amendment and would be considered “cruel and unusual” punishment if he was executed. This ruling was later overturned in the Stanford v. Kentucky case.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-size: 14.6667px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Baze v. Rees // <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14.6667px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">In 2008, Ralph Baze and Thomas Bowling were sentenced to the death penalty in Kentucky. The men argued that executing them by lethal injection would violate the Eight Amendment rule of cruel and unusual punishment. Under court rule, lethal injection must not inflict "unnecessary pain". The men's attorneys argued that the chemicals used to kill them carried an unnecessary risk of inflicting pain during the process. Many other states use this same type of lethal injection. The Court heard oral arguments on January 7, 2008 and on April 16, the Court rejected the arguments and upheld Kentucky's method of lethal injection by a vote of 7-2.