1. CHAPTER 2 HISTORY CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE SUPREME COURT
THE PREMODERN PERIOD
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2. Premodern Death Penalty Cases
Some premodern death penalty cases set precedent for post-Furman capital jurisprudence
Other cases, perhaps most of them, are mostly of historical interest
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3. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Categories
Clemency
Jurisdiction
Methods of execution
Ex post facto
Sentencing
5th Amendment
Juries
14th Amendment
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4. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Clemency
United States v. Wilson (1833): Pardon can be refused
Ex parte Wells (1855): Pardons can be conditional
Biddle v. Perovich (1927): Death sentence can be commuted without defendant’s consent
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5. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Jurisdiction
Ex parte Milligan (1866): Trials of civilians by military commissions unauthorized by Congress unconstitutional in jurisdiction
Milligan released and sued military for false imprisonment
Awarded $5 in damages
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6. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Permissible Methods of Execution
Wilkerson v. Utah (1878): Shooting
In re Kemmler (1890): Electrocution
Louisiana ex rel. Francis v. Resweber (1947): A second electrocution after first one failed to kill
Andres v. U.S. (1948): Hanging
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7. Ex Post Facto Laws
Declares criminal an act that is not illegal when committed
Increases punishment for a crime after it is committed
Alters rules of evidence in a particular case after crime committed
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8. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Ex Post Facto
In re Medley (1890): New death penalty statute as applied to crimes committed before it came into force violated U.S. Constitution
Rooney v. North Dakota (1905), Mallory v. South Carolina (1915): New statutes that benefit defendants can be applied despite ex post facto status
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9. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Sentencing
Calton v. Utah (1889):Trial court must direct jury’s attention to alternate sentences
Williams v. New York (1949): Judge’s sentence of death overruling jury’s recommendation of life imprisonment was constitutional because it was based on additional information from other court sources
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10. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Fifth Amendment (Double Jeopardy)
Stroud v. United States (1919): After a defendant’s appeal, any reversals of convictions and/or sentences resulting in new trials do not constitute second jeopardy
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11. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Juries
Winston v. United States, Strather v. United States, and Smith v. United States (1899): Laws attempting to control jury discretion are unconstitutional
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12. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Juries (cont.)
Aldridge v. United States (1931): Juries my be questioned about racial and religious prejudices
Patton v. Mississippi (1948): Jury selection may not consistently exclude members of any representative group
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13. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Equal Protection and Due Process
Powell v. Alabama (1932)
Involved the Scottsboro Boys
First case to apply 14th Amendment’s due process clause to capital cases in state courts
First in a series of cases that extended 6th Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel
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14. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Equal Protection and Due Process
Irvin v. Dowd (1961): First time Court overturned murder conviction because of pretrial publicity
Griffin v. California (1965) : Prosecutor’s comments and the trial judge’s instructions to the jury about Griffin’s failure to take the stand and testify during the guilt stage of his trial violated the self-incrimination clause of the Fifth Amendment
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15. Premodern Death Penalty Cases: Equal Protection and Due Process
Gilbert v. California (1967):
Taking of handwriting exemplars did not violate Gilbert’s constitutional rights
However, postindictment pretrial lineup is a “critical” stage in criminal proceeding and the denial of counsel at that stage violates the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel
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