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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 7 page paper examines the question of cruel and unusual punishment. A definition is discerned. Several cases are cited.
Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Page Count:
7 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA626cau.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
a teenage breaking and entering prank and turned deadly. Simmons and his friend Charles Benjamin, who was fifteen years old at the time, startled the owner and decided to duct
tape her mouth shut, tie her hands and feet, drive her to a railroad trestle and kick her over the edge where she dropped forty feet into a river ("Should
he die?," 2004). Though the defendants were young, it seems that the death penalty was designed for this type of case. Simmons was sentenced to death, but the Missouri Supreme
Court determined that the sentence was equated with cruel and unusual punishment simply because at the time, Simmons was only seventeen years old ("Should he die?," 2004). He was simply
not completely responsible for his actions ("Should he die?," 2004). Instead, his sentence was commuted to life in prison and there would be no chance for parole ("Should he die?,"
2004). It seemed fair. After all, many people contend that capital punishment is cruel and unusual and is a violation of the Constitution anyway. In this case, the punishment was
deemed cruel and unusual only due to the age of the defendant. Yet, this case raises many questions. When is a punishment cruel and unusual? According to a student,
the phrase "cruel and unusual punishment may include the death penalty, torture, solitary confinement, and for others it may mean long prison sentences, denial of conjugal visits, or poor prison
health care. The possibilities are numerous." In other words, while the phrase cruel and unusual punishment is used a great deal to make points in different forms of writing
and speech, its definition is not entirely clear. In the Simmons case, cruel and unusual punishment was equated with the age of the defendant, suggesting that a steep punishment
...