The history of capital punishment in the U.S. took a major turn in 1972, when, in its landmark decision in Furman v. Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court ôàbanned the death penalty,ö (Stevenson, 1996, p. 16). The death penalty had proven to be a severe form of punishment that appeared to be meted out by the courts with bias, particularly against poor minorities. However, a few years later in 1976, the Supreme Court ôàreauthorized the death penalty,ö (Stevenson, 1996, p. 16).
When the Supreme Court reauthorized the death penalty, it did so, in the opinion of Chief Justice Warren Burger, based on the doctrine that ôàdeath is differentö as a punishment, (Stevenson, 1996, p. 16). Along with this doctrine, a new legal framework emerged that equated to ôàguided discretion,ö meaning that in death penalty cases states had ôàan obligation to exercises a higher degree of care, review and scrutinyö when sentencing individuals to capital punishment, (Stevenson, 1996, p. 16).
Since the death penalty was reversed, its history has been controversial and complex in the U.S. Justice System. Many organizations opposed to capital punishment, like Amnesty International, view its use as cruel and unusual punishment. From that view, many opponents of capital punishment view it as unconstitutional while many others oppose it on religious grounds. The use of the death penalty has also created conflict, controversy and contradiction in the U.S. justice system. In fact, between the reauthorization of the death penalty in 1976 and 1982, seventy percent of death sentences were ôàreversed by federal courts due to fundamental constitutional violations,ö (Stevenson, 1996, p. 16).
Controversy over the use of the death penalty also has a history among the very members of the Supreme Court who reauthorized its use. One of the biggest aspects of controversy is the fact that capital punishment appears to be meted out with bias. In 1987,...