Welsh+Period+7+Amendment+8

== = = =**//"Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel or unusual punishments inflicted." - The Bill of Rights //**=

=...or, in our own words...= =**//"The 8th Amendment protects us from bails being set too high, fines being set too high, and from torture and painful punishments." - Peter K, David C & Nick D //**  = 


 * Essential Question:** How did the issues which prompted the creation of the 8th Amendment compare with the issues they're applied to today?
 * Essential Answer:** Historically, the British Crown had used high bails and high fines to keep people in prison, even when they didn't deserve to be. They had also tortured and brutally killed people to punish them for crimes, and to get confessions from them. The British addressed these situations in their English Bill of Rights. James Madison included the same protections in our 8th Amendment in the Bill of Rights to protect Americans from the same unfair treatment. Even today, the courts are trying to settle disputes over whether or not cruel punishments, like waterboarding, can be used by our government.

James Madison thought of the Eighth Amendment. He proposed it on September 25, 1789.
 * //1. Who thought of this amendment? //**

**//2. When was it ratified? //** The 8th Amendment was ratified on December 15, 1791. (Information found on [|www.usconstitution.net/const.html] )

This amendment is important to make sure that punishments weren't so rough and fines weren't so high. Also, it was to make sure that people could get out on a reasonable bail when they are accused of crimes. <span style="color: rgb(243, 32, 32);">Some courts required excessive bail when the government wanted to keep a person in jail. If the defendant was accused on bad evidence, or of a minor crime, the government could use high bails to keep them in prison. This was used in Britian to keep political prisoners in jail for long periods of time. (Information found on http://law.jrank.org/pages/6368/Eighth-Amendment.html)
 * //<span style="color: rgb(80, 54, 236);">3. Why is the 8th Amendment important? //**
 * //<span style="color: rgb(52, 31, 249);">4. Why was excessive bail given to accused criminals? //**

<span style="color: rgb(64, 55, 241);">**//5. What were the punishments this amendment protects us from?//** <span style="color: rgb(245, 50, 50);">Some of the punishments that are considered cruel and unusual are: drawing and quartering (the dislocation of bones by pulling a person in four directions and cutting them into quarters), branding (burning the skin of a person to mark a certain design or pattern), burning at the stake (burning a person alive), disemboweling (cutting a person open and removing their internal organs while they are alive), a dunking stool, beheading, and public whipping. (Information found on http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1049/what-do-drawn-and-quartered-and-keelhauling-mean )

<span style="color: rgb(255, 17, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">

<span style="color: rgb(245, 77, 77);">Nowadays, a suspect in a crime can get bailed out for most crimes, and the bail is reasonable, that is, most people can come up with the bail that is set for them. Also, if someone is convicted of a crime and they are given a fine, it can't be excessive. That means that it has to fit the seriousness of the crime. For example, parking fines are small, but fines for dumping dangerous chemicals are large. Finally, the 8th Amendment is why we don't punish people cruelly, like whipping or torturing them. Although the death penalty is legal now, the criminal has to be killed in a humane way, like by lethal injection. (Information found on http://law.jrank.org/pages/6368/Eight-Amendment.html ) <span style="color: rgb(60, 52, 234);">**//7. Is forcing someone to talk a violation of the 8th Amendment?//** <span style="color: rgb(238, 47, 47);">The 5th Amendment is the main protection against self-incrimination, however, it might be covered under the 8th Amendment too. The U.S. Courts haven't allowed force to be used on a suspect to make them tell anything that would incriminate themselves, because of the 8th Amendment.
 * //<span style="color: rgb(28, 25, 240);">6. How does this amendment apply to us today? //**

<span style="color: rgb(17, 44, 228);"><span style="color: rgb(32, 35, 243);">**//<span style="color: rgb(54, 47, 238);">8. Are death penalties legally considered cruel and unusual punishment? //** <span style="color: rgb(240, 25, 25);">No, except for a period in the early 1970's the US Supreme Court has ruled that the death penalty is legal. <span style="color: rgb(66, 117, 245);"> <span style="color: rgb(249, 52, 52);">Surprisingly, yes. Illegal immigrants are protected under the 8th amendment.
 * //<span style="color: rgb(36, 17, 232);">9. Does the 8th amendment apply to illegal immigrants? //**

<span style="color: rgb(255, 42, 0);">They are still legal citizens and in the U.S.A., aren't they? The answer is yes, as do all the other 26 amendments. There are some prisoners in a US military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba who may not be covered, because they are illegal combatants. Their protections are being decided in the courts right now! (information found on http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/15/AR208121502944.html )
 * //<span style="color: rgb(15, 13, 227);">10. Does the 8th amendment apply to U.S.A. prisoners? //**



=<span style="color: rgb(103, 0, 255);">**<span style="color: rgb(10, 0, 255);">---<span style="color: rgb(244, 26, 26);">CURRENT EVENTS ** =

Current Event - <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); background-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">**<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Peter K. ** "Prosecutors Point to Signed Checks in Opposing Bail for Madoff**" http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/09/business/09madoff.html?ref=business Publication: The New York Times (January 8, 2009) Author: Alex Berenson**

<span style="color: rgb(61, 16, 224);">Prosecutors are asking a court to revoke the bail of Mr. Madoff. He has admitted to stealing 50 billion dollars from investors. Mr. Madoff was given bail of 10 million dollars. This may sound like a lot of money, but really is not excessive bail when you consider the 50 billion that he stole. Prosecutors are trying to end his bail because he was caught trying to hide money from the government and the people he ripped off while he was out on bail. Investigators located checks in his desk that he had already signed, that were worth 173 million dollars. Prosecutors also said that he sent a million dollars worth of jewelry and watches to his friends and his family in December. They are saying that these acts show that Mr. Madoff if planning to run away. It is because of the 8th Amendment that an admitted criminal, like Mr. Madoff, is allowed to be free on bail, even when the public wants him in prison.
 * Summary:**

Current Event - <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">**<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">David C. ** "Cruel and more unusual" (//the spaces indicate where "_" should be)// Publication: The Boston Globe (December 28, 2008) Author: Anonymous**
 * http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2008/12/28/cruel_and_more_unusual

Summary: //After the article//:<span style="color: rgb(250, 46, 46);"> The article had a blog that followed it. The discussion was obviously on the article. 19 people screamed out their //very// strong emotions. No curses, but every word was like a knife. The bloggers were at each other's throats. They were defending their purpose on the death penalty for Addison or the death penalty in general with great determination; that's good thing. The way the Internet talkers used it wasn't. In this failing America, how can we survive the world when we fight amongst each other? Current Event - <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Nicholas D. ** "Prison should be unpleasant" http://www.cmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20090109&Category=OPINION&ArtNo=901090326&SectionCat=OPINION03&Template=printart
 * <span style="color: rgb(239, 31, 31);">A condemned man, Michael Addison, is a reputed gang member that killed a police officer. That offense is fits the type of punishment in New Hampshire; death. The death penalty is still being balanced out. In other words, the death penalty is still illegal, but it is often overlooked. For example, in the article's publishing year (2008), 37 people were executed, and nearly half of the executions took place in Texas, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. And that was a 14-year low! It is also proven that states that use death penalties have higher crime rates. The Death Penalty is something the U.S.A. Supreme Court can't decide on.
 * Publication: Concord Monitor**
 * Made by:Cathy O'Connor**

//Summary//:
<span style="color: rgb(20, 27, 245);">The writer of this article, Cathy O'Connor, says that the world is a free place. She says we can have heat, TV, a library, a gym, and etc. But she thinks that jail is not as a //**cruel**// place place as it sounds. She states that people in jail get three meals a day and a heating facility. She also says that the prisoners have limited TV time. the bad thing is that there is no gym. I guess the prisoners can't stay well-shaped. She states that prison is an **//unpleasant//** place though. It is not a reward for doing a crime or whatever gets you in jail, it is the opposite of a reward. She has in her article that "Prison was not intended to be fun or pleasant experience" (I'm guessing she went to prison).

<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">F.Y.I :
<span style="color: rgb(0, 127, 255);">Cathy thinks that death is a **//cruel and unusual punishment//**. She says that death is the **ulitimate //cruel and unusual punishment//**. I agree. Also, the outside world is a pleasent place. Jail, or prison, is a nightmare.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); background-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 200%; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">END