|
|
Sumner v. Nevada Dept. Of Prisons, 483 U.S. 66 (1987)
Contents:
Show Summary
Hide Summary
General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
Sumner v. Nevada Dept. Of Prisons, 483 U.S. 66 (1987)
Sumner v. Nevada Department of Prisons No. 86-246 Argued April 20, 1987 Decided June 22, 1987 483 U.S. 66
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR
THE NINTH CIRCUIT
Syllabus
While serving a life sentence without possibility of parole upon a first-degree murder conviction, respondent was convicted of the capital murder of a fellow prisoner, and sentenced to death under a Nevada statute mandating the death penalty in these circumstances. The State Supreme Court affirmed respondent’s conviction and death sentence. The Federal District Court, in a habeas corpus proceeding, vacated the death sentence, holding that the mandatory capital punishment statute violated the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. The Court of Appeals affirmed.
Held:
1. Under the individualized capital sentencing doctrine, it is constitutionally required that the sentencing authority consider, as a mitigating factor, any aspect of the defendant’s character or record and any of the circumstances of the particular offense. Pp. 70-76.
2. A statute that mandates the death penalty for a prison inmate who is convicted of murder while serving a life sentence without possibility of parole violates the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Pp. 77-85.
791 F.2d 788, affirmed.
BLACKMUN, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which BRENNAN, MARSHALL, POWELL, STEVENS, and O’CONNOR, JJ., joined. WHITE, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which REHNQUIST, C.J., and SCALIA, J., joined, post p. 86.
Contents:
Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Sumner v. Nevada Dept. Of Prisons, 483 U.S. 66 (1987) in 483 U.S. 66 483 U.S. 67. Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=Q36A99E12KEWZFE.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Sumner v. Nevada Dept. Of Prisons, 483 U.S. 66 (1987), in 483 U.S. 66, page 483 U.S. 67. Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=Q36A99E12KEWZFE.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Sumner v. Nevada Dept. Of Prisons, 483 U.S. 66 (1987). cited in 1987, 483 U.S. 66, pp.483 U.S. 67. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=Q36A99E12KEWZFE.
|