Madison v Alabama - The Limits of the 8th Amendment
Is it legal and justifiable to execute a man for a crime he doesn't remember committing?
That is the question the Supreme Court will try to answer with its upcoming ruling for Madison v Alabama.
In 1985, Vernon Madison shot and killed a police officer, and was eventually sentenced to be executed in May of 2016. For the next few decades, as Madison sat on death row, his mental health constantly deteriorated. After several strokes and a diagnosis of vascular dementia, Madison is now legally blind, has slurred speech, and, most importantly, has no recollection of ever murdering anyone.
His current mental state became the grounds of a new slew of appeals by Madison.
After arguing his incompetence and losing in a state court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Madison, deeming him incompetent and unfit for execution. However, the decision was reversed shortly afterward by the Supreme Court, who unanimously ruled against Madison in Dunn v Madison, arguing that because the state court's decision was "not so lacking in justification", the Eleventh Circuit Court could not overturn the decision.
After having his execution rescheduled for January 2018, Madison once again appealed the Supreme Court, this time making his case on a constitutional issue instead of purely his own competence. The fate of his appeal rests on two key questions: Does the Eighth Amendment and the Court's jurisprudence prohibit a state from executing a prisoner whose mental disability leaves him with no memory of the commission of the capital offense? And Does the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment preclude a state from executing a prisoner who suffers from severe cognitive dysfunction such that he cannot remember the crime for which he was convicted or understand the circumstances of his scheduled execution?
After hearing the case on October 2nd, 2018, the Supreme Court is expected to reach a decision in the coming months. In the meantime, what do you think? Do you think that it is right to punish someone for a crime they don't remember committing? Or do you think that people should be punished for crimes they commit, regardless of their current condition?
Sources:
https://www.oyez.org/cases/2018/17-7505
https://www.oyez.org/cases/2017/17-193
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/01/supreme-court-to-weigh-whether-man-can-be-executed-for-crime-he-cant-remember.html
https://ballotpedia.org/Madison_v._Alabama
That is the question the Supreme Court will try to answer with its upcoming ruling for Madison v Alabama.
After arguing his incompetence and losing in a state court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Madison, deeming him incompetent and unfit for execution. However, the decision was reversed shortly afterward by the Supreme Court, who unanimously ruled against Madison in Dunn v Madison, arguing that because the state court's decision was "not so lacking in justification", the Eleventh Circuit Court could not overturn the decision.
After having his execution rescheduled for January 2018, Madison once again appealed the Supreme Court, this time making his case on a constitutional issue instead of purely his own competence. The fate of his appeal rests on two key questions: Does the Eighth Amendment and the Court's jurisprudence prohibit a state from executing a prisoner whose mental disability leaves him with no memory of the commission of the capital offense? And Does the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment preclude a state from executing a prisoner who suffers from severe cognitive dysfunction such that he cannot remember the crime for which he was convicted or understand the circumstances of his scheduled execution?
After hearing the case on October 2nd, 2018, the Supreme Court is expected to reach a decision in the coming months. In the meantime, what do you think? Do you think that it is right to punish someone for a crime they don't remember committing? Or do you think that people should be punished for crimes they commit, regardless of their current condition?
Sources:
https://www.oyez.org/cases/2018/17-7505
https://www.oyez.org/cases/2017/17-193
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/01/supreme-court-to-weigh-whether-man-can-be-executed-for-crime-he-cant-remember.html
https://ballotpedia.org/Madison_v._Alabama
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