Gregg v Georgia

Gregg v. Georgia (1976)

by Taylor Tice and Aransas Haley

Significance

references

This case is one of the 5 most important death penalty cases in United States history. Gregg v. Georgia overturned a previous 1972 case Furman v. Georgia, also concerning the death penalty, which, interestingly, took place 4 years before Gregg v. Georgia. In Furman v. Georgia, the Court ruled that the death penalty system and how it was operated was unconstitutional and "cruel and unusual". However, this ruling was overturned by the decision of Gregg v. Georgia. Additionally, Gregg v. Georgia made the death penalty legal again and brought this controversial practice back into American incarceration systems and politics. The implications of the death penalty are still a widely debated topic today. The total number of individuals executed since 1976 is a large 1,392, with 3,035 individuals currently on death row in the United States.

Case Overview

"FindLaw's United States Supreme Court Case and Opinions." Findlaw. FindLaw, 2016. Web. 03 Oct. 2016. <http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/428/153.html>.

"Gregg v. Georgia." Oyez. Chicago-Kent College of Law at Illinois Tech, n.d. Oct 3, 2016. <https://www.oyez.org/cases/1975/74-6257>

"Gregg v. Georgia (1976)." Bill of Rights Institute. Bill of Rights Institute, 2016. Web. 3 Oct. 2016. <https://www.billofrightsinstitute.org/educate/educator-resources/lessons-plans/landmark-supreme-court-cases-elessons/gregg-v-georgia-1962/>.

"Gregg v. Georgia, 1976." Gregg v. Georgia, 1976. The 'Lectric Law Library, Web. 03 Oct. 2016. http://www.lectlaw.com/files/case26.htm

• Troy Leon Gregg was charged with double murder and armed robbery in 1976 in the state of Georgia.
• The jury ruled in favor of the death penalty due to the additional aggravating circumstances that were pertinent to the case.
• Gregg challenged this ruling, believing that the death penalty was "cruel and unusual punishment" and that the state of Georgia was violating his 8th and 14th Amendment rights.
• Gregg v. Georgia is the first case regarding the death penalty to be upheld in the Supreme Court.

The Issue

Reasoning

• The Supreme Court chose to uphold Georgia's ruling. The Justices believed the ruling was validated based on the severity of the crime (premeditated murder.)
• They ruled that the original verdict was lacking "passion, prejudice, arbitrary factors," and was not disproportionate to the crime.
• Additionally, they didn't want to overturn the original ruling because they believed that "capital punishment serves as a useful deterrent to future capital crimes and an appropriate means of social retribution against its most serious offenders." (Oyez)

our opinions

• Gregg believed that the death penalty was "cruel and unusual punishment" and claimed that it violated his 8th and 14th Amendment rights.
• An additional factor in the case is that the death penalty is rarely given in Georgia. Because of this, Gregg believed the jury's verdict was prejudiced and the punishment was disproportionate to the crime committed.

Aransas's opinion:

The significance of this case is the effect it has had on how society as a whole views capital punishment. Now, those who commit murder in the first degree (murders paired with a felony) are given the death penalty more often than before. Also, more states began to see the death penalty as a method of crime prevention. Not only do some states believe it is a reasonable punishment for such a severe crime, but an effective way to deter people from committing murder. However, this isn't always the case and the ethics of the death penalty remain debatable especially because of prosecutor's fabrications and the fact that witnesses can misremember.

Taylor's opinion:

I do not agree with this case's ruling or the death penalty in general. My opinion is that the death penalty creates a paradigm that troubled people cannot reform themselves by any means. I believe that anyone can improve themselves if the person is given enough counseling, therapy, resources, etc. Anyone can turn themselves around if they are in an environment that encourages them to do so; the problem is that this is not the case with the current prison system in America.

The Decision

The Facts

In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court upheld the death penalty as the appropriate punishment for Gregg's crimes, rebuking Gregg's claim that his sentence was "cruel and unusual punishment".

• The case was argued on March 31, 1976 and decided on July 2, 1976
• Gregg received two counts of murder and two counts of armed robbery
• Gregg's sentence was between either the death penalty or life in prison - death penalty was chosen because:
• the defendant was involved in other crimes besides the murders (armed robbery)
• the defendant committed the two murders in order to obtain the wealth and property of the victims