Law Commons^™

Understanding Capital Punishment Law, Third Edition, Scott Howe, Linda Carter, Ellen Kreitzberg

Scott W. Howe

No abstract provided.

Furman's Mythical Mandate, Scott Howe

Scott W. Howe

This Article argues for the rescue and reform of Supreme Court doctrine regulating capital sentencing trials under the Eighth Amendment. Many legal commentators, both liberal and conservative, including several members of the Supreme Court, have concluded that the Court's regulation of capital sentencing trials is a disaster. The repeated criticisms rest on a commonly accepted view about a principal goal of capital sentencing regulation. The prevailing account, fueled by the rhetoric of the Justices, stems from the notion that Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 208 (1972), revealed a mandate of consistency in the use of the death penalty that the …

Capital Punishment: Eighth Amendment Limits, Scott Howe

Scott W. Howe

No abstract provided.

Capital Punishment: Due Process Limits, Scott Howe

Scott W. Howe

No abstract provided.

The Futile Quest For Racial Neutrality In Capital Selection And The Eighth Amendment Argument For Abolition Based On Unconscious Racial Discrimination, Scott W. Howe

Scott W. Howe

This article begins by discussing the characteristics of current capital-sentencing systems that make racial discrimination in capital selection uncontrollable. It also summarizes the social-science evidence that white-victim bias widely plagues capital selection. The article then develops the two central arguments suggested by its title. First, it provides a detailed explanation of why proposals for federal regulatory reform cannot succeed in achieving racial neutrality in capital selection. Second, it provides a theory to explain why unconscious racial discrimination in capital selection violates the Eighth Amendment and, given the futility of federal regulatory remedies, justifies abolition.

The Troubling Influence Of Equality In Constitutional Criminal Procedure: From Brown To Miranda, Furman And Beyond, Scott Howe

Scott W. Howe

This article identifies and critiques a theory of the criminal clauses revealed in Supreme Court decisions after Brown v. Board of Education. As the title implies, the article contends that the Court has often gone astray in constructing these clauses by focusing on equality. The article contends that the criminal clauses are better understood as discrete protections of individual liberty than as reflecting a unified theory or separate theories about equality. The article proposes a reformulation of doctrine in varied realms of constitutional criminal procedure, including police interrogation, capital sentencing and administrative searches and seizures.

The Failed Case For Eighth Amendment Regulation Of The Capital-Sentencing Trial, Scott W. Howe

Scott W. Howe

This article explores Eighth Amendment theories that might justify the effort by the Supreme Court to regulate capital-sentencing trials but explains why they are problematic. The Court typically has asserted that the aim of its capital-sentencing doctrine is to achieve nonarbitrariness or consistency in the use of the death penalty. However, the article shows why the Court's regulatorty efforts have not served that goal, why that goal is unachievable, and, ultimately, why that goal does not comport with the mandate of the Eighth Amendment. The article contends that the better view is that the Eighth Amendment limits the use of …

Reassessing The Individualization Mandate In Capital Sentencing: Darrow's Defense Of Leopold And Loeb, Scott W. Howe

Scott W. Howe

This article begins by recounting the story of Clarence Darrow's defense of Leopold and Loeb in 1924. The account is based heavily on a recently republished trial transcript. The Leopold and Loeb trial captured world-wide attention and, even today, continues to engender interest and controversy. It was apparently the first instance of an elaborate psychological defense offered in mitigation to avoid the death penalty for defendants who conceded their guilt of a horrendous murder. Darrow's summation in the case is also considered one of the most spectacular examples in history of legal advocacy.

After describing Darrow's extrordinary defense at length, …