Running head: EIGHTH AMENDMENT 1
EIGHTH AMENDMENT 8
The Eighth Amendment
Courtney L. Davis
Miles College
Abstract
The United States(U.S.) Constitution is said to be the supreme law of the U.S. and its purpose is to aid its citizens. The first ten Amendments, also known as the Bill of Rights, were passed and made a part of the Constitution in 1791. They were passed to grant citizens the protection of their natural rights, meaning they were born with them. This research paper will be addressing the eighth Amendment. The eighth Amendment provides protection to citizens of the U.S. against excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishments. Courts refer to this Amendment when sentencing the guilty of punishment for crimes. What exactly is cruel and unusual punishment? What is excessive bail or an excessive punishment? This topic will be supported through details pertaining to Kalief Browder, the court case of Eddings v. Oklahoma, Roper v. Simmons, Furman v. Georgia, Robinson v. California, U.S. v. Salerno, and Stack v. Boyle, and a brief history of the Eighth Amendment and its critics.
The Eighth Amendment
The Eighth Amendment states as follows: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted” (Baltzell, n.d.). Alongside the other nine Amendments of the Constitution, the Eighth Amendment turned out to be a piece of what is known as the Bill of Rights in 1791. Numerous Americans and states were concerned when the Constitution was first proposed claiming it didn't seem to secure the rights of the general population. That is the reason why it was vital to have the Bill of Rights included. It was put there to ensure the general population's rights were protected. The 10 Amendments incorporated into the Bill of Rights are said to have been impacted by the English Bill of Rights of 1689 and the Virginia Declaration of Rights by George Mason. The English Bill of Rights shielded the privileges of English natives from the King. Similarly, as with the English form, the American form likewise was set up to secure the privileges of Americans. Thomas Jefferson said, “A Bill of Rights is what the people are entitled to against every government, and what no just government should refuse, or rest on inference.” (Jefferson, 1787)
The Eighth Amendment has raised such a significant number of debates with its broad definition. It says that "cruel and unusual" disciplines are not permitted, but what precisely is cruel and unusual? According to Dictionary.com, cruel and unusual punishment means "torture, deliberately degrading punishment, or punishment that is too severe for the crime committed." (Dictionary.com, n.d.) There is no chance for the U.S. to clarify this piece of the Eighth Amendment since they just don't have a clue. Things that were ordinary in the 1800's appear to be dreadful now, for example, hanging and cutting off body parts. Be that as it may, now, the U.S. utilize ...
