[Deathpenalty]death penalty news --- USA

[Joerg Sommer]

death penalty news

March 1, 2005


USA:

High court: Juvenile death penalty unconstitutional

Tuesday, March 1, 2005 Posted: 10:19 AM EST (1519 GMT)

The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Constitution forbids the execution 
of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes, ending a 
practice used in 19 states.

The 5-4 decision throws out the death sentences of about 70 juvenile 
murderers and bars states from seeking to execute minors for future crimes.

The executions, the court said, were unconstitutionally cruel.

(source: AP / CNN)


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Supreme Court Bars Death Penalty for Juvenile Killers


The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Constitution forbids the execution 
of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes, ending a 
practice used in 19 states.

The 5-4 decision throws out the death sentences of about 70 juvenile 
murderers and bars states from seeking to execute minors for future crimes.

The executions, the court said, were unconstitutionally cruel.

It was the second major defeat at the high court in three years for 
supporters of the death penalty. Justices in 2002 banned the execution of 
the mentally retarded, also citing the Constitution's Eighth Amendment ban 
on cruel and unusual punishments.

The court had already outlawed executions for those who were 15 and younger 
when they committed their crimes.

Tuesday's ruling prevents states from making 16- and 17-year-olds eligible 
for execution.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority, cited the fact that most 
states don't allow the execution of juvenile killers and those that do use 
the penalty infrequently. The trend, he noted, was to abolish the practice.

"Our society views juveniles ... as categorically less culpable than the 
average criminal," Kennedy wrote.

(source: AP / New York Times)


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Supreme Court Strikes Down Death Penalty for Juveniles

The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Constitution forbids the execution 
of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes, ending a 
practice used in 19 states.

The 5-4 decision throws out the death sentences of about 70 juvenile 
murderers and bars states from seeking to execute minors for future crimes.

The executions, the court said, were unconstitutionally cruel.

It was the second major defeat at the high court in three years for 
supporters of the death penalty. Justices in 2002 banned the execution of 
the mentally retarded, also citing the Constitution's Eighth Amendment ban 
on cruel and unusual punishments.

The court had already outlawed executions for those who were 15 and younger 
when they committed their crimes.

Tuesday's ruling prevents states from making 16- and 17-year-olds eligible 
for execution.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority, noted that most states 
don't allow the execution of juvenile killers and those that do use the 
penalty infrequently. The trend, he noted, was to abolish the practice.

"Our society views juveniles ... as categorically less culpable than the 
average criminal," Kennedy wrote.

Juvenile offenders have been put to death in recent years in just a few 
other countries, including Iran, Pakistan, China and Saudi Arabia. All 
those countries have gone on record as opposing capital punishment for minors.

The Supreme Court has permitted states to impose capital punishment since 
1976 and more than 3,400 inmates await execution in the 38 states that 
allow death sentences.

Justices were called on to draw an age line in death cases after Missouri's 
highest court overturned the death sentence given to a 17-year-old 
Christopher Simmons, who kidnapped a neighbor in Missouri, hog-tied her and 
threw her off a bridge. Prosecutors say he planned the burglary and killing 
of Shirley Crook in 1993 and bragged that he could get away with it because 
of his age.

The four most liberal justices had already gone on record in 2002, calling 
it "shameful" to execute juvenile killers. Those four, joined by Kennedy, 
also agreed with Tuesday's decision: Justices John Paul Stevens, David H. 
Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer.

Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence 
Thomas, as expected, voted to uphold the executions. They were joined by 
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

(source: Reuters / Washington Times)