Ring v. Arizona: The Sixth and Eighth Amendments Collide: Out of the Wreckage Emerges a Constitutional Safeguard for Capital Defendants

Abstract

The purpose of this note is to examine the Supreme Court's decision in Ring v. Arizona in the context of late twentieth century Supreme Court capital punishment jurisprudence. First, Part II will examine the history of American Eighth Amendment capital punishment jurisprudence beginning with Furman v. Georgia, the Court's 1972 decision that shaped the Eighth Amendment constitutional limitations on capital punishment to the present day. Second, Part III will examine the recent history of Supreme Court Sixth Amendment sentencing decisions to the extent that they pertain to the Court's decision in Ring. Third, Parts IV and V will scrutinize the Ring decision itself. Finally, Part VI will address the impact of the Ring decision on states that currently dispense capital punishment in a manner similar to that previously employed by Arizona.