View of the execution chamber in a Florida prison. Photo: Florida Department ofCorrections/Doug Smith | Wikimedia Commons. |
According to the Supreme Court,
it’s up to a jury to decide whether or not a guilty party should be given the
death penalty, by determining if factors of the case warrant it. Generally,
this is due to the nature of the crime, not just if it is something for which
the death penalty can be given, but how or why the crime was committed. These aggravating
factors are required to qualify a person for the death sentence.
The Florida law calls for jury
advisement, but allows the judge to determine if the death penalty applies.
This violates the Sixth Amendment because that calls for an impartial jury to
decide a defendant’s fate, not a single judge.
Florida has 390 people on death
row, the second longest list in the country, but this ruling could require the
state to go over some of those cases. One in particular, the case that came to
the Supreme Court in the first place, is that of Timothy Hurst, found guilty
for the 1998 murder of Cynthia Harrison in Pensacola. In that case the judge
assigned the death penalty, and now that case will be review to determine if
Hurst can be re-sentenced.
Other states, namely Alabama,
Delaware, and Montana, have similar laws on the books, which may have to be
changed as well. This ruling could have an impact throughout the country, at
least in those states, which have the death penalty. There are a number of
advocates against the death penalty, and they will likely be encouraged by this
ruling and push for further revisions along these lines.
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