Question

"It is clear that the ancient and humane limitation upon the State's ability to execute its sentences has as firm a hold upon the jurisprudence of today as it had centuries ago in England. The various reasons put forth in support of the common-law restriction [on executing the insane] have no less logical, moral, and practical force than they did when first voiced. For today, no less than before, we may seriously question the retributive value of executing a person who has no comprehension of why he has been singled out and stripped of his fundamental right to life."
-Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall, majority opinion in Ford v. Wainwright (1986)

Based on the text, which of the following amendments was the focus of the Court’s ruling in Ford v. Wainwright (1986)?

A. The Second Amendment
B. The Eighth Amendment
C. The Fourth Amendment
D. The Sixth Amendment

Answer 1

Answer:

B. The Eighth Amendment

Explanation:

In the Ford v. Wainwright, a court had sentenced Alvin Bernard Ford to death penalty for first-degree murder. At the beginning of said trial, Ford did not present any signs of his condition, but as time went by his mental sanity worsened. Because of this the eighth amendment was brought into the case.

It was argued that to sentence a person who is mentally disturbed or insane to the death penalty violates the eighth amendment. And the logic behind said amendment was that since punishments must be fair and not vile or cruel, and an insane person is not aware on why he or she is being convicted to die, it would be cruel to kill said person, therefore going against the eighth amendment.