Eighth Amendment
Definition
Part of the Bill of Rights that prohibits excessive bail amounts and cruel and unusual punishment.
Analogy
Imagine you're playing a game with your friends where you get penalized for breaking rules. The Eighth Amendment is like an agreement among players that penalties won't be too harsh or outlandish - no one will have to pay all their savings as penalty or do something extremely painful or degrading.
Related terms
Bill of Rights: The first ten amendments to the US Constitution which outline basic individual liberties and rights.
Capital Punishment: Also known as death penalty; it's a government-sanctioned practice whereby a person is put to death by state as punishment for crime.
Furman v. Georgia (1972): A landmark Supreme Court case that suspended capital punishment in America due its inconsistent application across different cases.
"Eighth Amendment" appears in:
Study guides (1)
Practice Questions (15)
What does the Eighth Amendment prohibit?
What role does the Eighth Amendment play in current discussions about prison reform?
How did historical events shape the development of Eighth Amendment's prohibitions on cruel and unusual punishment?
What impact might occur if Eighth Amendment did not include protections against cruel and unusual punishment?
What implications could evolving societal norms have on future interpretations of the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment?
What is guaranteed by Eighth amendment in US constitution?
What is a common pattern in how Supreme Court interprets Eighth Amendment's prohibition of "cruel and unusual punishments"?
How does the prohibition of Cruel and Unusual Punishment under Eighth Amendment differ from the protection against Self-Incrimination under Fifth Amendment?
What ensures the continued existence of the Eighth Amendment prohibiting cruel and unusual punishment?
In the context of selective incorporation, which case first expanded the Eighth Amendment's "cruel and unusual punishment" clause to apply to state laws?
What does the Eighth Amendment protect citizens from?
What impact did the Eighth Amendment have on America's criminal justice system?
How could the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment affect future policies on capital punishment?
What does the Eighth Amendment of the U.S Constitution protect citizens against?
What is specifically banned by the Eighth Amendment of the US Constitution?
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