Equal Protection in Criminal Punishment
Equal Protection in Criminal Punishment The 14th Amendment articulates that no State shall “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws” (Sullivan and Gunther 486). It is nearly impossible though, for the equal treatment of all persons, since every law affects people differently. “This command cannot literally require equal treatment of all persons, since almost all laws classify in some way, by imposing burdens on or granting benefits to some people and not others” (Sullivan and Gunther 486). The Equal Protection Clause was meant for the application of all laws equally, not necessarily equal treatment of all people. There is a great difference in the two. The people most adversely affected by these iniquitous laws are mainly minorities and those from low socio-economic groups. The inequality in sentencings of the criminals is often the focal point of legal discussion. The most debatable topic when it comes to criminal punishment is the area surrounding the death penalty. It is often given unjustly and undeservingly to minorities. Race is the most controversial and monumental factor in determining the length and severity of a criminal’s punishment. Racial discrimination has been evident in our legal system in the past and continues to remain present to this day. Our court system has deprived minorities of their rights throughout the years. In Strauder v. West Virginia, the State excluded blacks from the jury. The State law stated that “all white male persons who are twenty-one years of age and who are citizens of this State shall be liable to serve as jurors” (Sullivan and Gunther 487). A black man facing trial in the 1800’s against an all white jury doesn’t stand a chance. The Court found that to deny citizen participation in the administration of justice solely on racial grounds "is practically a brand upon them, affixed by law; an assertion of their inferiority, and a stimulant to that race prejudice which is an impediment to
Cited: Bright, Stephen B. “Discrimination, Death, and Denial: The Tolerance of Racial Discrimination in Infliction of the Death Penalty.” Santa Clara Law Review Vol. 35 (1995.): 433. Free Jr., Marvin D. Racial Issues in Criminal Justice: the Case of African Americans. Westport: Criminal Justice Press, 2004. 185,187. Schlesinger, Traci. "How Determinate Sentencing Contributed to the Prison Boom: The Failure of Race Neutral Policies" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the The Law and Society Association, Jul 06, 2006. http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p94999_index.html “Sentencing disparity: Crack Cocaine v Powdered Cocaine.” The Defenders Online. 27 May 2009. 16 Dec. 2009. http://www.thedefendersonline.com/2009/05/27/sentencing-disparity-crack-cocaine-v-powder-cocaine/ Sullivan, Kathleen M. and Gerald Gunther. Constitutional Law: 16th Ed. New York: Foundation Press, 2007. The Sentencing Project: Research and Advocacy for Reform. “Federal Crack Cocaine Sentencing.” 13 December 2009. http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/dp_crack_sentencing.pdf