Death penalty
...rt was not intended to prohibit executions. In the 1977 Supreme Court case, Coker v. Georgia, that the death penalty is an unconstitutional punishment for the rape of an adult woman when the victim was not killed. The Supreme Court banned the execution of insane people and required a process for determining mental capabilities. But, in 1989 the Court held that executing people with mental retardation was not a violation of the Eighth Amendment. In 1988, in Thompson v. Oklahoma, four justices held that the execution of criminals fifteen years of age and younger at the time of their crimes was unconstitutional. For example, in recent news in Washington the Supreme Court rejected an appeal on a case to examine juvenile executions. So it is still upheld today that juvenile executions are unconstitutional and is a shameful practice. In the case Gregg v. Georgia, the court allowed capital punishment to continue in certain states. Gary Gilmore was the first to be executed by a firing squad under the new laws. Today, 38 states and the federal government have re-established the death penalty. In 1982, Texas became the first state to execute a prisoner using lethal injection. The gas chamber, hanging, the firing squad, and the electric chair are still used in some states. Florida’s electrocutions have been criticized following several shocking malfunctions. There are a lot of aspects that are involved with...