Publication Date
2015
Document Type
Paper
Keywords
Furman v. Georgia, Death penalty, Capital crimes
Abstract
Professor Robert J. Smith encourages readers, lawyers, and courts to forget Furman v. Georgia and to focus instead on death penalty challenges grounded in the diminished culpability of nearly all capital defendants. We applaud Professor Smith’s call to focus on the mental and emotional characteristics that reduce the blameworthiness of so many of those charged with capital crimes; recognizing diminished culpability as the rule rather than the exception among capital defendants conveys a reality that rarely finds its way into reported cases. We are troubled, however, by Professor Smith’s call to “forget Furman.” We believe the title and the article’s efforts to undermine Furman-based challenges disserve Professor Smith’s principal goal — addressing the United States’ broken death penalty system.
Publication Statement
Copyright held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Sam Kamin, Justin F. Marceau
Provenance
Received from author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
8 pgs
File Size
527 KB
Publication Title
Iowa Law Review
Volume
100
First Page
117
Last Page
124
Recommended Citation
100 Iowa L. Rev. Bull. 117 (2014 – 2015)