8th Amendment & Death Penalty Debate-Secondary Civics PDF

Secondary CIVICS HANDOUTS Punishment & Death Penalty ChalkDustDiva©2014 Product may not be distributed or sold to others without permission from the producer. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Chalk-Dust-Diva Thank you for your purchase! Leave feedback and earn TpT credit! CLICK HERE Te...

Secondary CIVICS HANDOUTS Punishment & Death Penalty ChalkDustDiva©2014 Product may not be distributed or sold to others without permission from the producer. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Chalk-Dust-Diva Thank you for your purchase! Leave feedback and earn TpT credit! CLICK HERE Terms of Use You MAY: You may NOT: • • • • • • Use this item for your personal use or use in your classroom. Purchase unlimited licenses for others to use as a discount. Post to any LMS that only you and your students have access to. Post this item to a public website. Share this item with others. Copy and modify this item to offer to others for free or for sale. Click to stay connected Clipart/Graphics Credit Additional Graphics: Pixaby, Library of Congress, National Archives Death Penalty Debate Essential Question: Should the Death Penalty be abolished? Background: The death penalty is a very controversial topic. Many people support the death penalty because they seek justice, “an eye for an eye”. Others believe the death penalty is “cruel and unusual punishment”. In 1972, the Supreme Court ruled in Furman v. Georgia that the death penalty was not in violation of the 8th amendment however it was being administered in a prejudiced and unjust manner. The States were then ordered to change their death penalty laws. Another case in 1976, Gregg v Georgia, stated that the States’ new death penalty laws were unconstitutional. Not only did the “life situation” of the defendant need to be evaluated before a death sentence but also an automatic appeal was forwarded to the States’ supreme court. What do you think? Read the following supporting and opposing arguments. Supporting Arguments Opposing Arguments A. If it were not for the threat of executions, the murder rate in the United States would be far greater. Statistics support this assertion. From 1955 to 1965, there were 78,500 murders and 492 executions in the United States. But during the period from 1966 to 1976, when the death penalty weakened, 288,310 murders were committed with only three executions carried out (U.S. Bureau of Justice Bulletin on Capital Punishment, 1989) B. Death is the proper “repayment” for the terrible crime of murder. The biblical idea of “an eye for an eye” applies here. The victim’s loved ones must not be forgotten. C. The judicial system provides death row prisoners, even the poor, with ample opportunity for appeals. The average stay on death row is eight years, with longer stays not uncommon. D. The possibility of executing an innocent person must be accepted as the price society pays for administering justice toward the guilty murderer. A. Many murders occur in the heat of emotion or during period of temporary insanity. The murderer is not thinking clearly, so fear of the death penalty is virtually nonexistent. In addition, States with no death penalty seem to have lower murder rate than States that have capital punishment. B. Killing is immoral, and the State should not be permitted to conduct executions. Executions are a throwback to uncivilized behavior. The State kills not to benefit society but to satisfy the mob of emotions of hate and revenge. “Thou shalt not kill” is one of the Ten Commandments. Every human being has dignity and worth. C. The death penalty is applied in an unfair manner, since those who are poor are most likely to be executed. In addition, an individual who kills a white person is still more likely to be executed than one who kills an African American person. D. Innocent individuals may be executed mistakenly. In Illinois, 13 prisoners on death row have been cleared of charges while only 12 have been executed since the State resumed executions in 1977. At least life imprisonment allows time for new evidence to be uncovered, thus possible freeing a wrongfully convicted individual. Should the Death Penalty be abolished? Be sure to support your opinion. ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ Name __________________________ Period _____ 8th Amendment Punishment PUp 8th Amendment Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. The 8th Amendment protects us from excessive bail or fines. Bail is a sum of money that the accused may be required to deposit with the court as a guarantee that he or she will appear in court. The Constitution does not guarantee that all accused persons are entitled to bail, just that the amount of the bail cannot be excessive. Preventive detention is a law that allows federal judges to order that accused felons be held without bail if there is a danger that the person will commit another crime if released. Critics think preventive detention amounts to presuming the accused guilty. The Court upheld the law in United States v. Salerno, 1987. Capital Punishment Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is hotly debated under the 8th Amendment. The Supreme Court voided capital punishment laws in the early 1970s because it felt that the punishment was applied “capriciously” to only a few convicts, often African American or poor or both. However, in 1976, the Court held for the first time that a new law which instituted the death penalty was NOT unconstitutional. The new law provided for a twostage trial process. One trial would determine guilt or innocence, and a second hearing would decide whether the death penalty was warranted. The Court later restricted the use of the death penalty to cases where the victim died. Despite these decisions, debate still surrounds the issue. Treason 1. Levying war against the United States or 2. Giving aid and comfort to the enemies of the United States. • A person can only commit treason in times of war, and it is punishable by the death penalty. • Other related acts, such as sabotage or espionage, can be committed in peacetime. John Brown, who was hanged as a traitor to Virginia because of his raid on Harper’s Ferry, is the only person ever to be executed for treason against a State. Review Questions: If you were a judge what would be some reasons you wouldn’t release someone on bail? ________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Do you agree with capital punishment? Why or why not? __________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ In your own words define treason _____________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Google Drive Lesson Teacher Instructions STEP 1: Sign into your Google account. STEP 2: Follow the link to access the digital files: Be sure to MAKE A COPY READING: Punishment & Death Penalty STEP 3: Before you share a slide with your students you MUST make your own personal copy of the digital file or you will be editing my original file. When you click the link above you will be forced to make a copy. • STEP 4: Share the lesson with your students. Choose from the options below: • - click the blue “Share” button on the top right. • - Share the link with your students. Be sure to select, “anyone • with the link can edit”. • • *Make sure students make a copy for themselves or they will • be editing your master copy. • - Or add the document to Google Classroom and select, “Make a Copy for Each Student”. • STEP 5: You can also give students a copy of “GD Student Instructions” which explains how to add text and pictures to the slide. • STEP 6: When students have completed their assignment they need to • Turn it in. Students can turn in their assignment by selecting the “Share” button and then adding your email address OR adding • the link to their file in Google Classroom OR if you added the file to Google Classroom, have your students simply select the • “turn-it-in” button. • Please contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions! Psychology US History World History Civics Click to see more products you may like [email protected]