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Revelations From The Blackmun Papers On The Development Of Death Penalty Law , Martha Dragich
Revelations From The Blackmun Papers On The Development Of Death Penalty Law , Martha Dragich
Faculty Publications
Professor Dragich uses the Blackmun papers to augment our understanding of Justice Blackmun's "evolution" on the question of capital punishment. Though the evolution was gradual, she finds that the case of Warren McCleskey seems to have deeply affected Justice Blackmun.
The 'Abuse Excuse' In Capital Sentencing Trials: Is It Relevant To Responsibility, Punishment, Or Neither?, Paul J. Litton
The 'Abuse Excuse' In Capital Sentencing Trials: Is It Relevant To Responsibility, Punishment, Or Neither?, Paul J. Litton
Faculty Publications
The violent criminal who was a victim of severe childhood abuse frequently appears in the responsibility literature because he presents a difficulty for theorists who maintain the compatibility of causal determinism and our practices of holding persons responsible. The challenge is based on the fact that learning about an offender's horrific childhood mitigates the indignation that many persons feel towards him, possibly indicating that they hold him less than fully responsible. Many capital defendants present evidence of suffering childhood abuse, and many jurors find this evidence to count against imposing death. The most obvious explanation for a response like this …